Risk, Health and Safety Information

Sole trader sentenced for tipper death failings

A Berkshire haulier has been fined for safety failings after a long-serving employee was run over and killed by a tipper lorry at his Reading head office.

Brian Gutteridge, 67, from Caversham, was crossing a road from the main office to a car park at J Mould (Reading) on Pingewood Road North, Burghfield Bridge, when the vehicle struck him on 9 November 2010. He died at the site as a result of the injuries he sustained.

Reading Magistrates Court heard (14 March) that Mr Gutteridge had been employed by business proprietor John Mould for more than 20 years, and was walking toward his car at the end of the working day.

The tipper lorry that hit him had pulled over to the side of the road so the driver could talk to another worker, but it pulled back out just as he stepped in front of the vehicle to walk past.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigated and found there were no designated crossing points on the road, and nothing to segregate pedestrians and vehicles or guide on who had the right of way.

HSE also established that J Mould had no formal workplace transport risk assessment, despite being advised by an independent health and safety consultant about pedestrian-vehicle interactions at another site in Reading.
John Mould, of Hydecrete Pit, Pingewood Road North, Burghfield Bridge, pleaded guilty to single breaches of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 in his capacity as a sole trader. He was fined a total of £40,000, the maximum fine magistrates can impose, with costs of £17,060.

After sentencing HSE Inspector Daniel Hilbourne said:

"John Mould has operated from the Burghfield Bridge site for more than 20 years, but had failed to properly manage workplace transport prior to Brian's tragic death.

"This is a well-recognised area of risk in the industry, especially on a site where there are numerous vehicle movements.

"There was a clear need for a formal traffic management system, including a designated pedestrian crossing, pedestrian walkways, a speed restriction and a strict rule to wear hi-visibility clothing at all times.

"Had vehicle-pedestrian interactions been better controlled and managed then Brian would not have been killed. It demonstrates the need for proper risk assessments, to undertake regular reviews and to be wary of complacency."
Jennifer Gutteridge, Brian's widow, said:

"The death of my husband has completely devastated my life, and that of my daughter and grand-daughter. I have lost my best friend, the man I loved, and I have no-one to talk to and share my memories with.

"Life has been very hard without him, not just for me but for all of us - his mother, brother and sisters included