Estate Agent Fined After Contractor’s Fatal Fall

An estate agent has been fined a five-figure sum after a 79-year-old maintenance contractor died following a fall from a roof. Roger Jary was attempting to perform minor repairs to a bungalow in Wales when he plunged from a plastic roof panel. Mr Jary fell two metres to the ground below and suffered fatal injuries.

Morris, Marshall & Poole, the estate agents who had hired Mr Jary for the maintenance task, had failed to provide appropriate planning and organisation for the work. They also failed to ensure the elderly man was competent enough to carry out the repairs to the gutter and carport.

“Roger Jary might be alive today if simple safety measures had been put in place. Morris, Marshall & Poole had a duty to ensure the safety of those they employed – whether working directly for them or not,” HSE Inspector Chris Wilcox revealed.

“If your business is in managing properties then you must ensure that anyone you engage to maintain those properties is competent and carries out their work safely to ensure their safety and that of others.”

HSE prosecuted Morris, Marshall & Poole for failing the Health and Safety at Work etc. 1974 Act. The estate agent had been managing the property on behalf of the landlord. Morris, Marshall & Poole were subsequently fined a £75,000 sum and ordered to pay costs amounting to £11,153.