Utilities company fined £500,000

A national utilities company was fined £500,000 and ordered to pay costs of £195,000 after the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that workers at the company were exposed to hand-arm vibration between 2002 and 2011 which put them at risk of developing Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS). An investigation carried out by HSE found that the company failed in its legal duty to ensure the risks to workers who used these tools was kept to as low a level as reasonably practicable. The company also failed to report to the enforcing authorities a significant number of cases of employees diagnosed with HAVS as was legally required