• Employee suffered serious injuries after hand became trapped beneath three-tonne machine during lifting operation.
• HSE investigation found lifting operation had not been properly planned or carried out safely.
• Worker later underwent surgery to amputate two damaged fingers.

A machine manufacturing company in Shepshed, Leicestershire has been fined £170,000 after an employee’s fingers were crushed when his hand became trapped beneath a machine during a lifting operation.

An experienced machine tool fitter was working for Winbro Group Technologies Ltd at its manufacturing site in Shepshed on 17 January 2024 when his right hand became trapped beneath the foot of a three-tonne machine during a lifting operation involving a forklift truck.

The worker’s hand was underneath the machine when an unintended action caused the forklift truck’s forks to drop to the floor. The machine was lifted to release his hand and, following medical treatment, two of the worker’s damaged fingers were amputated in hospital.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Winbro Group Technologies Ltd had failed to ensure the lifting operation involving the forklift truck was properly planned and carried out in a safe manner.

HSE guidance states that where it is not reasonably practicable to avoid people working beneath suspended loads, employers should establish safe systems of work to minimise the risk. This includes ensuring loads are properly secured. Further guidance can be found here: Planning and organising lifting operations – HSE.

Winbro Group Technologies Ltd, of Illuma House, Unit 1, Gelders Hall Road, Shepshed, Leicestershire, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 8(1) of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998. The company was fined £170,000 and ordered to pay full prosecution costs of £7,999, along with a victim surcharge of £2,000, at Leicester Magistrates’ Court on 12 May 2026.

HSE Inspector Rebecca Whiley said:

“Every year, a significant proportion of accidents, many of them serious and sometimes fatal, occur as a result of poorly planned lifting operations.

“This was a wholly avoidable incident caused by a lack of planning. HSE will not hesitate to take action against dutyholders who fail to do all that they should to keep people safe.”

This HSE prosecution was brought by enforcement lawyer Neenu Bains and paralegal officer Hannah Snelling.

Further information:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. Relevant guidance can be found here: Planning and organising lifting operations – HSE.
5. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so.  The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.

• Man sustained life-changing injuries resulting in amputation when crushed under one-tonne block of concrete.
• Investigation found the driver of a forklift truck involved in the incident had no training.
• Company failed to protect workers from moving vehicles on its site.

A vehicle maintenance company in Worcestershire has been fined after one of its workers was crushed under a one-tonne concrete block.

The father -of-two, 35, had been working for Redditch-based BA Mobile Fleet Services Limited when the incident happened on 14 December 2023.

His leg injuries were so severe his  left foot and lower leg subsequently had to be amputated, while he sustained serious injuries to his right leg. The man was also dismissed from his job after the incident.

The then 33-year-old had been inside an HGV box trailer as it was being loaded with the one-tonne concrete blocks. The vehicle was being loaded in preparation for a Driver Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) brake test. He had been inside the trailer with a colleague while a third worker loaded the blocks using a forklift truck. It was during this process that the forklift truck ‘nudged’ a stack of blocks inside the trailer, causing them to topple on to the man’s legs – resulting in his devastating and life-changing injuries.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that BA Mobile Fleet Services Limited had failed to take appropriate precautions to segregate workers from moving vehicles on site. The investigation also identified that the company had not provided training to the forklift truck driver and they had not authorised him to operate such vehicles.

Preventing workplace transport incidents requires organisations to implement proven control measures consistently. This means conducting thorough risk assessments, maintaining equipment rigorously, and empowering workers to identify hazards before incidents occur.

You can find comprehensive guidance on workplace transport on our website.

BA Mobile Fleet Services Limited of Unit 2 The Works, Tanworth Lane, Redditch, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act. The company was fined £30,000 and was ordered to pay £4,325 costs at a hearing at Kidderminster Magistrates Court on 15 April 2026.

HSE inspector Emma Page said:

“The injuries sustained here by this young man have been truly life-changing.

“Too many people are injured or killed every year in workplace transport related incidents.

“Companies should do all they can to ensure all workers go home safely to their families at the end of each day.

“We will take action against those who fail to do so.”

This HSE prosecution was brought by enforcement lawyer Edward Parton and paralegal officer Rebecca Withell.

Further information:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We are dedicated to protecting people and places, and helping everyone lead safer and healthier lives.
2. More information about the legislation referred to in this case is available.
3. Further details on the latest HSE news releases is available.
4. HSE does not pass sentences, set guidelines or collect any fines imposed. Relevant sentencing guidelines must be followed unless the court is satisfied that it would be contrary to the interests of justice to do so. The sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences can be found here.