Tour operator fined due to asbestos health and safety risks
A ship management and tour operator firm was fined due to the exposure of workers to asbestos. The cruise ship was being refurbished when workers were exposed to the deadly fibres. The Teesside Court heard about the case in court wherein Hebridean Princess was refurbished in order to reduce the combustible material on board. During the work the HSE was called in. The HSE conducted health and safety audits learning that labourers were exposed to asbestos when they removed ceiling panels in the Tiree lounge. None of the workers had proper protection masks on for such removal. The work was also carried out without any asbestos survey being conducted.
The incident happened in 2009. The second day of work on the ceiling was stopped when concerns were raised about asbestos, but it was the failure of risk management in terms of a survey that led to the prosecution. The previous year another ship was refurbished that had asbestos, so there was a danger it would also exist in this ship. The company ended up paying 6,000 pounds in a fine and about the same for the court costs for the previous incident. They also had to pay 12,000 pounds in a fine and half that for the court costs.
Asbestos regulations are not to be trifled with. The risk to health from asbestos means a company has to follow through on the duty of care. The company failed to conduct risk assessments. This could lead one to believe they would benefit from the workstation risk assessment training course provided by Winter and Company. If you want to avoid any risk assessment related fines it is a good idea to take a course in how to manage risks at your company.
