Development company fined in “proactive prosecution”

A development company has been sentenced for breaches of the Work at Height Regulations.

HSE said that the prosecution was proactive for repeated height breaches on more than one site, without any adequate means to prevent persons, materials or objects falling and causing injury.

Landrose Developments Limited of North Circular Road, London, pleaded guilty to safety failings after a routine site inspection on 6 February 2013, which resulted in enforcement action being taken.

Landrose were carrying out construction of 20 domestic properties, including 10 houses and 10 flats at a site in Willesden when HSE inspectors arrived.

Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard that despite this action, the breaches were repeated at the construction site and resulted in further enforcement action.

However, despite the previous action, the breaches were repeated at the construction site, without any adequate means to prevent persons, materials or objects falling a distance liable to cause personal injury. This resulted in further enforcement action.

Landrose Developments Limited was fined £16,000 with costs of £2,221 after pleading guilty to breaching Regulations 6(3) and 10(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. There was also a victim surcharge applied.