Vending Machine Company Has to Pay Thousands of Pounds after Employee Falls Through the Roof

A vending machine supplier employee suffered minor cuts and bruises when he fell through a roof in at work in Skelmersdale, a court was told.

The 40-year-old employee from Runcorn who has requested that he remains anonymous was clearing out the gutters at Paragon International Ltd on 4th September last year when he fell around six metres through a roof light at work.

The employer in question trade under the name Eurocup and sell confectionary and drinks to vending machines all over the UK. The company were prosecuted on Monday by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation discovering that they hadn’t ensured that he could work safely on the roof.

The Ormskirk Magistrates’ Court were told that the employee was trying to clean the guttering between two connected buildings. He was told to try to stay away from the roof lights but the company had put nothing in practice to attempt to avoid the incident from occurring when he fell at work.

The employee along with another worker had to carry bags full of debris to the top of the roof and were walking along the metal sheets in between the roof lights. The men were attempting to get to the top of the roof so that they could drop off the bags for the forklift truck to collect.

One of the men fell through the light after he slipped and landed into the accounts office below at work. He suffered bruising to his leg and right side and injuries to his back and right hand.

The company should have found alternative ways of doing the work safely for example getting edging around the lights or hiring a cherry-picker the court heard.

The company Paragon International Limited Ltd pleaded guilty to single breaches of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and the Management of Health and Safety Work Regulations 1999. The company received a fine of £10500 and had to pay £3067 for prosecution costs.

The head of our Employers Liability and Public Liability team agrees with the courts’ decision:

“This is clearly an unsafe system of work which the employee has been asked to adhere to by his employers. Furthermore, the employer has not provided the employee with correct work equipment to carry out the task in question which has resulted in the accident.

“Luckily for the victim, he was not badly injured but it could have been worse. The employers have been justifiably fined for their actions in breaching a number of health and safety and workplace regulations.”

What should I do if I’ve been involved in a workplace accident?

1. Report the accident to your employer and make sure it is entered in the Accident Book.

2. Attend your GP or local hospital to have your injuries checked.

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