Risk, Health and Safety Information

Woman crushed by 4 tonne digital advertising board

A pedestrian was trapped under a large hoarding that fell on her in Tooting, South London on the 12^th May. 

The woman was walking to work when the 20ft wide digital advertising board weighing 4 tonnes fell onto her.  The advertising board had been installed very recently.

The woman was taken to hospital by ambulance, and has been treated for non-life threatening leg and hip injuries.

It is not known why the billboard fell off the side of the building, but owners Clear Channel are investigating.

Clear Channel are now reviewing the 39 other digital signs that were rolled out towards the end of last year over concerns of their safety.

The incident has been referred to the HSE.

Firm in court after workers potentially exposed to asbestos

A laboratory design and installation specialist has been fined after exposing workers, pupils and teachers to asbestos material at a school.

The incident in July 2012 occurred during refurbishment work to modernise parts of Newmarket College School’s Science block. During the work, managed by Labform Ltd, sub-contractors disturbed asbestos as they were removing a wall and channelling the floor.

The Cheshire firm was prosecuted at Ipswich Magistrates Court on Tuesday 12 May after an investigation found that the company had not arranged for a detailed Refurbishment and Demolition Asbestos Survey to be undertaken, as was required.

Labform Ltd, of Lymm, Cheshire, was fined £22,400 and ordered to pay £11,741 in costs after pleading guilty to four breaches of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector David King said: “Exposure to asbestos fibres is a serious and well known health risk, so it is essential that duty-holders take suitable and sufficient measures to prevent the disturbance, spread and exposure to asbestos.

“Failing to take action to identify asbestos while planning work, and to ensure that any contractors who may disturb asbestos are aware of the location and type of asbestos present, and not taking appropriate measures to protect the health of others, is totally inexcusable.”

Plastics firm fined for failing to maintain workers insurance

Merlin Mouldings (Hednesford) Ltd have been fined for failing to have Employers Liability Insurance for its workers in place.

Despite repeated warnings and reminders from HSE the company failed to have insurance in place, despite it being a legal requirement.

The company of Rugeley Road, Hednesford were sentenced in their absence by Stafford Magistrates Court on Wednesday 13 May 2015 and fined £2,500 for breaching the Employers Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969. They were also ordered to pay costs of £3,191.80 and a victim surcharge of £120.

Firm sentenced after worker hit by lorry
A Carlisle man suffered serious injuries when he was run over by the cab of an articulated lorry in a haulage yard where he worked.

On Tuesday 13 May 2015, Carlisle Magistrates’ Court heard Graham Robinson was working as a transport manager for The Haulage (Holdings) Organisation Ltd, which is the transport arm of the Omega Proteins business, at the company’s site at Quarry Garage, Stainton on 30 April 2014.

Mr Robinson was walking from the site office building to the car park while HGV vehicles belonging to the company were operating in the yard. He would normally have walked along the side of the yard to reach the car park but was unable to do so because there was a shallow trench across this route and also a HGV and trailer parked on it.

The trench had been dug to make repairs to a diesel pipe and had been marked with cones with tape strung between them. It blocked the normal pedestrian route and no alternative route was provided by the company.

The lorry knocked Mr Robinson to the ground he was trapped beneath the vehicle’s fuel tank, colleagues had to use a JCB to lift the HGV sufficiently to free him. He suffered two broken toes, a tendon in one foot was stretched and his legs were heavily bruised. 

Although the trench caused the immediate problem on the day of the accident, the court was told there was no effective demarcation or segregation of pedestrian and vehicle areas and routes in the busy haulage yard, such as railings and marked pedestrian crossings.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Matthew Tinsley said: “This accident could easily have been fatal. As it is Mr Robinson is still experiencing lingering difficulties with one ankle and both knees that impact on his daily life and he may require surgery. The accident could have been prevented if the company had taken simple steps to keep pedestrians and vehicles apart in the yard, as they did after the accident.”

The Haulage (Holdings) Organisation Limited of Swalesmoor Farm, Halifax, West Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 33 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc and was fined £20,000, with costs of £1,878.50.

Scaffolder fined for unsafe working at height
Michael Alldis trading as Southern Tube Scaffold of Crawley has been prosecuted after workers were put at risk during refurbishment work.

Following a complaint from a member of the public, HSE visited the site at Upper High Street Winchester on 18 December 2013, where Michael Alldis was contracted to provide a four lift scaffold and temporary roof for on-going refurbishment work to a property. 

On Thursday 14 May 2015, West Hampshire Magistrates Court heard that no guardrails, harnesses or any other fall mitigation equipment was in place to protect workers on the roof from the risk of falling. Items from the roof were also being removed in an unsafe manner potentially putting members of the public at risk.   

Michael Alldis trading as Southern Tube Scaffold pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 4(1)(a) and 6(3) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and was fined a total of £18,000 and ordered to pay full costs of £1907.50.

After the hearing HSE Inspector Adam Wycherley said: “Although Mr Alldis was an experienced scaffolder, in this instance the standards of safety that he endorsed on site fell well below those expected during the dismantling of a scaffold.

“Falls from height remain the most common form of workplace fatality – there is no excuse for not planning work at height properly or ensuring the appropriate safety equipment is used, the Scaffolding industry are well aware of the risks involved and the methods which should be put in place to manage these risks.”
 

Myth Busters

Clothes store staff not allowed scissors at the counter
Issue
Enquirer and their girlfriend were shopping in a chain clothing retail store. She bought a blazer and wanted to wear it home so asked for scissors to cut the tag off but was advised that for 'health and safety' reasons they were no longer allowed to keep scissors at the counter.
Panel opinion
This is a clear cut example of poor customer service hidden behind a health and safety excuse. The retailer has now confirmed that there is no company policy banning scissors in store. Scissors are an everyday object and the risk of harm from using them to remove tags is minimal

Consultants and Letting Agents misinterpreting the risks of exposure to legionella of their tenants

Issue
Consultants and letting agents are i) using the revised L8 ACOP to infer there is new legislation regarding landlords responsibilities and ii) misrepresenting what the law requires of landlords of domestic rented properties in relation to assessing and controlling the risks of exposure to Legionella bacteria of their tenants, for financial gain.
Panel opinion
Health and Safety law does not require landlords to produce a ‘Legionnaires testing certificate'. Legionella testing is required only in exceptional circumstances and generally not in domestic hot and cold water systems. Such letting agents and consultants are scaremongering landlords, for financial gain, by misinterpreting and exaggerating the legal requirements to manage and control legionella in domestic premises.