Two firms have been fined after a pedestrian sustained a permanent brain injury when parts of a decaying advertising sign fell onto her head.
Olivia Richardson, then aged 33, from Clapham, was hit by a section of the sign advertising the luxury St George Wharf development as she walked on the pavement at Vauxhall Cross, near Vauxhall Bridge, with her partner on 22 March 2008.
The HSE prosecuted both St George South London Ltd (SGSL) — an agent for the site owner St George Plc — and A E Tyler Ltd (AETL), then trading as Allsigns, for allowing the sign to become a safety risk.
On the 26 September, the Old Bailey heard that parts of the timber sign, measuring approximately 12 by 3 metres and positioned more than three metres above the pavement, had decayed to the point that it was blown down by a strong gust of wind.
The court heard that Ms Richardson’s partner recalled hearing a cracking sound as the pair approached traffic lights at Vauxhall Bridge. He turned to find her lying on her back beneath the sign, bleeding heavily from a deep head wound and slipping in and out of consciousness.
She was hospitalised for five weeks, including several days in intensive care, and required significant brain surgery. Formerly a primary school teacher, she is no longer able to work and continues to suffer from multiple permanent effects of her injury.
An investigation by the HSE found that the sign had a design life of two years, but had been in position for over nine, and hadn’t in that time been checked for structural soundness.
SGSL and AETL both had a duty to ensure the sign did not pose a risk to the passing public, and the court heard that had it been properly inspected and maintained, Ms Richardson’s injuries could have been avoided.
AETL should have specified the limited safe working life of the sign and SGSL should have had a programme in place to ensure the maintenance of the sign.
Following a trial in June 2013, St George South London Ltd, of St George House, The Boulevard, Imperial Wharf, Fulham, was fined £300,000 and ordered to pay costs of £222,692 having been found guilty of breaching section 3(1) of the HSWA 1974.
A E Tyler Ltd, of Crown House, Commerce Road, Brentford, Middlesex, was fined £60,000 with costs of £22,855 after pleading guilty to breaching the same section, when the matter first came before the court in November 2011.
Following the sentence, HSE inspector Loraine Charles, said: “Throughout the time that the sign remained in place, St George South London Ltd made no sensible efforts to ensure that the structure was safe.
“Meanwhile, A E Tyler Ltd continued to carry out cosmetic maintenance to the sign, and to make changes to its appearance for many years after it had come to the end of its safe life, without alerting St George to its obligation to ensure that the sign was properly inspected and maintained.”
A E Tyler entered an early guilty plea at the first opportunity, they no longer use timber for their signs and have since put a service in place to carry our maintenance for signs they provide.
The disparity in fines reflected the early guilty plea by A E Tyler and the difference in size and wealth of the companies.
Both companies cooperated with the investigation.
Approaches to managing the risks associated Musculoskeletal disorders
In this episode of the Safety & Health Podcast, we hear from Matt Birtles, Principal Ergonomics Consultant at HSE’s Science and Research Centre, about the different approaches to managing the risks associated with Musculoskeletal disorders.
Matt, an ergonomics and human factors expert, shares his thoughts on why MSDs are important, the various prevalent rates across the UK, what you can do within your own organisation and the Risk Management process surrounding MSD’s.
