Lifts, lifting equipment and lifting accessories are essential part of modern life. They remove the need to climb numerous flights of stairs in an office and make working in an industrial environment more tolerable. Often, lifting equipment is used to make a job safer but when that equipment fails there are disastrous consequences for users and those around them. Using unsafe lifting equipment can be fatal A sheriff’s court in Scotland recently heard how the failings of both a plant hire operator and the contractor…
The year has barely got underway and already several companies have received significant fines for breaches of legislation in relation to Working at Height Regulations 2005. Here Moorepay looks at the lessons to be learned and how employers can protect themselves and employees. Failure to assess risk resulted in worker death Two companies from Carmarthenshire and the West Midlands have been fined after a worker was killed when he fell from a telehandler. Swansea Crown Court heard how a 50 year old self-employed contractor working…
With forecasters predicting up to four months of stormy weather ahead, Britain could be facing the worst winter in 100 years. Managing your team during a period of disruption can be a challenge, so here's a quick checklist to make sure you've given yourself the best chance of success. With experts EXACTA WEATHER warning Brits to expect a very “exciting” December – even hinting at a potential White Christmas – businesses should be aware of the knock-on effect to operations within their own organisation. So,…
11% of ALL prison sentences for H&S offences (since guidelines were first introduced in the Health and Safety at Work Act in 1974) have been handed out in the last eight months to October 2016. In a trend we predicted in our Sentencing Guidelines update webinar earlier in the year (hat tip), recent reports show 23 people received prison time or suspended sentences for H&S breaches in the last eight months – compared with 166 in the last 42 years (less than five a year).…
With Merlin, the owners of Alton Towers, fined £5 million following the Smiler accident in June 2015, the fact that two directors at another business received suspended prison sentences for H&S breaches in the same week may have gone unnoticed. And so might the prosecution of the scrapyard featured in a BBC documentary series. In fact, a read of HSE press releases for September lists at least 18 cases where Companies and/or Directors were heavily punished as a result of serious injuries or fatalities resulting…
A UK car manufacturer has been fined £120,000 for failing to protect workers from the risks of asbestos at one of its sites. The prosecution was brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), who also secured a conviction against a Kent school and building contractor for the same offence in January 2016. It’s no surprise the HSE takes cases concerning asbestos very seriously: the toxic substance accounts for the deaths of approximately 5,000 workers every year, more than the total number of deaths on…
A 'reckless' restaurant owner has been jailed for six years for the manslaughter of a customer who suffered a fatal anaphylactic shock following an allergic reaction to a takeaway curry. The 52 year old businessman was found guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence when a customer with a severe peanut allergy died after eating a takeaway ordered from the restaurant – despite the diner insisting his meal must be nut-free. And in a judgement that should serve as a wake up call for other food…
YouTube is many things. Home of all cat videos. Handy DIY resource. And 21st century TV station (or the 21st century equivalent of Beadle's About at least). But one thing it is not renowned for is a repository of health and safety best practice. Search 'forklift' and the top three hits are: In many 'blue collar' industries – for example transport & storage, construction, or agriculture – workplace transport is a vital element, and specifically forklift trucks. So how do you keep your employees safe…
Recently, the BBC reported the shocking news that a woman fell into an open lift shaft at a Birmingham Coffee Shop. It will be some time before the events leading up to the accident in Birmingham are known, but reports indicate that the doors, on an upper level, were able to opened without the lift car being in position. While there should be numerous safety features built into modern lifts that should prevent this type of accident, this shows how important it is for businesses…
It’s the biggest change to Health & Safety legislation since the 70s… Now, serious breaches in Health & Safety legislation can lead to bigger fines and heavier prison sentences. With magistrates having much more power to issue heavier fines or even jail sentences, employers are now likely to face much harsher penalties for these breaches. It is vital that employers are aware of the sentencing which follows any prosecution… What has changed? Magistrates have been given the power to use jail sentences in addition to…
