6th February 2020

An Exeter based airline fined £100,000

An Exeter based airline was fined £100,000 and ordered to pay £9,963 after an employee fell into the lift shaft to the bottom floor and suffered injuries. An investigation by HSE (Health and Safety Executive) found that the lift doors had a fault which meant that they defaulted to locked. As a result, the emergency door release key was being routinely used by employees to bypass the fault and therefore the lift’s safety devices.

10th February 2020

Lincolnshire food ingredients manufacturer fined £180,000

A Lincolnshire food ingredients manufacturer was fined £180,000 and ordered to pay costs of £4,622 after one of its employees suffered partial amputation of the four fingers on his right hand after it came into contact with the rotating vanes of a rotary valve.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), found that the company had failed to carry out a risk assessment for the task of clearing blockages from collection hoppers. As a result, suitable measures to either avoid or minimise the risks from contact with dangerous moving parts of machinery and working at height were not implemented, and a safe system of work for the task was not provided to employees. The investigation also found that insufficient information, instruction and training had been provided to employees as to how the task should be carried out safely, and arrangements for supervision and monitoring were ineffective as dangerous working practices had persisted for a number of years unchallenged.

9th March 2020

Cheshire power station operator fined £200,000

A Cheshire power station operator was fined £200,000 and ordered to pay costs of £7,163 after three contractors were injured by a sudden release of water and sludge while carrying out maintenance work.  An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the pressurised contents of the pump and associated pipework had not been discharged prior to work commencing due to the drain pipe being blocked. This resulted in the release of stored energy during the removal of the pump instead of during the isolation process.

9th March 2020

Paper-milling company fined £300,000

A Somerset paper-milling company has been fined £300,000 and ordered to pay costs of £11,191 after an employee suffered life changing injuries.  An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the company had not provided a safe system of work for the removal of broken paper from the after-dryer section of the paper-making machine when the machinery was operated in reverse.