An employee suffered a horror accident at his employment at Custom Insulation on the 7th of August 2018 where his hand was severed.
The gentleman, who has not been named, was using a roller press at the company’s registered address in Burton when his hand was pulled into the roller press with the products he was using.
Although the machine was fitted with a guard and interlocking trips which should have prevented such an injury, an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the guard on the machine was inadequate, along with the guards on two other presses.
It was also found that no checks were completed by the company to ensure that the protective measures were performing correctly, which would have highlighted that the trips were not working on the guards.
As a result, the company appeared at Derbyshire Magistrates’ Court on the 19th of July 2021. The company admitted to breaching the Health and Safety Act 1974 by failing to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, that the health, safety and welfare of all of its employees was protected.
Custom Insultation Ltd also admitted to failing to inform employees of the risks involved with using the roller presses, further breaching the Act. The Court therefore fined the company £16,000 and ordered them to pay £4633 in costs and £170 to the victim.
The HSE inspector, Lyn Spooner, has stated that “this incident could so easily have been avoided by simply identifying control measures and safe working practices and having systems in place to monitor their continued effective operation. Companies should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards.”
Sadly, injuries like the above are not uncommon. Statistics have estimated that around 581,000 accidents at work were reported in 2020, with 69,208 consisting of serious injuries that had to be escalated to RIDDOR and around 79,027 new claims were submitted against employers.
WHAT TO DO NEXT
Oakwood Solicitors Ltd has a wealth of expertise in handling claims for compensation for those who have suffered accidents that are not their fault. If you have any questions about your claim, get in touch today for a no-obligation consultation with our Employers’ and Public Liability team.
Choose one of the methods on the right-hand side of this page, or call us on 0113 200 9787 to find out how we can help you.
Alex Singleton joined Oakwood Solicitors in April 2021 as an experienced Paralegal, having worked in Personal Injury since 2018. Currently, Alex works in the Employers’ Liability and Public Liabilit…
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