Health and Safety Audit, Company Guilty in Worker Fall
A construction company is prosecuted for an incident at work wherein an employee suffered major injuries when he fell from scaffolding at a South Warwickshire work site. The company is based in Stratford-upon-Avon. The worker was 62 years old at the time of the incident. He was standing on a scaffolding board that gave way under his weight.
The fall occurred in 2010, where the employee fell at least 2.5 metres. The fall caused him to break his pelvis in two places and almost cut through his left thigh. The injuries sustained caused the man to be off work for six months. The HSE investigated with health and safety audits to determine the cause of the issue.
It was found during the health and safety at work inspections that the scaffold was damaged, but the company did not change it out or get it fixed. Instead, they had provided equipment not fully prepped for the work required at such heights. Bags or netting could have been an additional measure used to protect the individual from the fall. Given the lack of risk assessments at the site, the company has been fined for their breach in safety and health laws. The fines will total more than £12,000 with additional costs included. It is an expensive mistake on the company’s part and one that the prosecution hopes will never be seen again from this company. The HSE hopes that other sites will learn from the incident.
