In court

£267k fine after worker falls 5 metres

Alison Fava

A worker who suffered head injuries and a fractured arm had fallen down an uncovered concrete chute.

Coventry Magistrates’ Court heard how the employee at concrete product supplier Litecast Limited was injured when he lost his footing and fell approximately five metres to the floor through an uncovered concrete chute in the batching area.

The Health and Safety Executive’s investigation into the incident, which occurred on 16 May 2017, found the cover of the concrete chute had been removed, and the company had no systems in place for employees working at height.

Litecast Limited of Pool Road Business Centre, Pool Road, Nuneaton pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 5 (1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and has been fined £267,000 and ordered to pay costs of £1,017.44.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Chris Maher said “This case serves as a reminder to the concrete industry that appropriate safety measures should be taken where employees have to work at height.

“Work at height is still the biggest source of fatalities at workplaces in Britain. Employers must put in place suitable arrangements and controls to ensure falls are, so far as is reasonably practicable, avoided.”x

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