Farmer suffers serious injuries after being crushed by haybales

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A farming partnership in Surrey has been fined £36,000 after a young father was seriously injured.

Christopher Rolfe from Horsham in West Sussex, sustained four rib fractures when five hay bales, each weighing 600kg, toppled and fell on top of him at Polesden Lacey Farm on 28 April 2022.

Farmer suffers serious injuries

Just 26 at the time, Christopher had gone into a barn to collect bales that were being delivered to local customers. The bales had been stored on a layer of pallets to keep them off the barn floor, which was damp at the time.

As he was removing the pallets to reach the stack of bales, an entire column of five toppled over and crushed him against the floor. Christopher lay trapped screaming for help until a nearby dog walker heard his cries and alerted the emergency services. He suffered fractures to his pelvis and ankle as well as his ribs.

Christopher said:

“I was a stereotypical young man in agriculture. I always thought I’d be fine – as long as I got to drive a quarter of a million-pound tractor down the road with everyone looking at me.

“Now that’s the last thing on my mind. I very much look at every piece of machinery in front of me and think how quickly can that thing kill me.

“I was lucky to come away with just a broken hip and leg fractures.”

He was then airlifted to hospital where he underwent emergency surgery before starting months of rehabilitation in order to regain his mobility to start walking again and caring for his then four-year-old son.

“I was later told that if I had gone by road to the hospital I would have died.

“But at the time, I didn’t even want to go to hospital. The biggest thing that went through my mind at the time was that I’d just ruined my summer!

“Having spoken to the staff at Kent Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance, I’ve come to realise just how important they are. When I needed them, they were there. My son, who’s now seven is even a young ambassador for them. So something really good has come from a really bad situation.

“My outlook on what happened is that I can’t change it, but I have to deal with what I’ve got.”

Chris has since resumed his career in farming.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found the poorly constructed stack of bales had not been stacked on firm, dry, level, freely draining ground but instead on top of old pallets as the barn floor was uneven and prone to waterlogging.

The bales were placed in vertical columns and were not ‘tied in’ by alternating the layers so the bales overlap and stop the stack from splitting. The company had also failed to identify safe working methods for unstacking bales, keeping the face racked back as bales were removed.

HSE guidance states the bottom of a stack should set up a dry, sturdy foundation for all additional bales. Bales should all be ‘tied in’ and the stack should be monitored to ensure it remains stable. More on this can be found at: Safe working with Bales in agriculture (hse.gov.uk)

F Conisbee and Sons Ltd, of Ockham Road South, East Horsley, Surrey, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 10 (4) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The company was fined £36,000 and ordered to pay £4,986 in costs at Staines Magistrates’ Court on 15 May 2024.

HSE inspector Sally Parkes said:

“This accident would have been easily avoided if the farm had followed the guidance published by either HSE or the National Farmers Union on the safe stacking of bales. Stacking bales requires skill and should be overseen directly by someone with knowledge of the industry guidance.

“Health and safety is a fundamental requirement of a sustainable farming business yet over the last 10 years, almost one person a week is killed and many more are seriously injured as a result of agricultural work.

“Even with the considerable financial strain on UK farming, prioritising health and safety not only ensures workers are kept safe but also improves well-being and health outcomes alongside supporting productivity and efficiency on farms.”

This prosecution was brought by HSE enforcement lawyer Jonathan Bambro and supported by HSE paralegal officer Ellen Garbutt.

Accidents on farms – How to claim

If you have been injured while working on a farm through no fault of your own, you may be entitled to claim compensation for the damages.

Under the Health and Safety 1974 Act, it is your employer’s duty to take steps to minimise risks in the workplace, by providing adequate training and protective equipment and ensuring the work environment is safe.

If you have been injured at work through no fault of your own, Oakwood Solicitors may be able to assist you with your claim.

How long do I have to make a claim?

Whether you are an employee, agency worker or contractor you may be able to claim for an accident at work.

To make an Employer Liability claim, legal proceedings must be commenced within 3 years from the date of your accident. Failure to do this may result in your claim being time-barred and you may not be able to make a compensation claim.

If a loved one has deceased, the time limit for bringing a claim is 3 years from the date of death.

At the time of the accident, it can be beneficial to gather as much evidence as possible to support your claim. This can include images of faulty equipment or the working environment.

Types of accidents on farms

Farms can be hazardous environments if the correct safety regulations have not been followed. Some common types of accidents include the following:

Transport – being struck by moving vehicles
Being struck by a moving or falling object, e.g. bales, trees, etc.
Falls from height
Asphyxiation or drowning
Contact with machinery
Injury by an animal
Being trapped by something collapsing or overturning
Contact with electricity, nearly two-thirds of which involve overhead power lines (OHPLs)
Slip, trip or fall on the same level
Falls from height

If I have been injured working on a farm, what should I do?

If you are injured at work, you need to do the following:

Report it to your employer as soon as possible, or if nobody is available – ensure you have reported it by sending an email/text to your line manager so there is written proof of the accident
Log the accident in the Accident Book or write it down and ensure a copy/photograph is kept
Take photographs of where your accident happened, any defective equipment and details of witnesses willing to provide evidence
If you are injured you must seek immediate medical advice either at your GP surgery or the local Accident and Emergency department. Make them aware it was an accident at work and what happened. This will assist your case as there will be further proof of the circumstances.

If you cannot drive, call an ambulance. It may be that if the circumstances of the accident are due to a dangerous situation that you talk to your union representative or it is reported to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) using the RIDDOR reporting (Reporting of Injuries, Disease and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations).

If you have had a fall from height, the first thing you should do is seek medical attention. Your health takes priority. No matter how minor your injuries seem, adrenaline usually kicks in and you may not know the initial damage caused.

If you receive first aid at the scene of the incident, we still recommend going to the GP or local hospital. This medical check-up will also serve as evidence of your injuries are the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Once you have received medical treatment, you should report the incident to your employer (if you haven’t already done so).

Make sure an accident book entry is recorded correctly, that all the information is correct and that it is signed by the relevant people.

RIDDOR

In certain cases, such as loss of consciousness, your accident must be reported in compliance with the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases, and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR).

For the purposes of RIDDOR, an accident is a separate identifiable, unintended incident that causes personal injury.

They will need to carry out a full inspection of the incident. It is important to have documented evidence, as this will help prove the accident happened and that the injuries you have sustained are a result of the incident.

You should obtain the names and contact information of any witnesses, or information of anybody who was involved in the accident.

Why use Oakwood Solicitors for my Employer Liability claim?

Oakwood Solicitors Ltd is an expert in Employers’ Liability cases and has over twenty years of experience in running and pursuing these cases.

We will ensure that we update you at every stage of the case and you will have a dedicated handler from the very beginning.

It can be very stressful after an injury and our team can assist you by breaking down the legal jargon during the process and listening to you.

When you instruct us, you can expect a friendly, down-to-earth approach together with extensive knowledge of the field which will be used to fight tenaciously with the insurers to achieve the maximum level of compensation possible for you.