A Nottingham sub-contractor has been sentenced to community service after a worker suffered major injuries when he fell from an unsafe ladder.
Lincoln Crown Court heard that Charanjit Singh had been employed by Hardev Gutheran Singh to carry out refurbishment work at a site in Ark Road, North Somercotes, Louth.
On 11 May 2013, Charanjit Singh, 57, was painting metal roof struts more than three metres high when the ladder he was working on gave way. He hit the concrete floor below, dislocating his shoulder and shattering his knee.
He spent ten days in hospital and had to have a knee replacement. He has been unable to work since as he still suffers discomfort and has mobility problems.
An HSE investigation found the aluminium ladder had been poorly maintained. A non-slip foot was missing and another was damaged, as was one of the rungs.
On 6 November 2015, Hardev Gutheran Singh, 32, of Park Street, Lenton, Nottingham, was ordered to complete 180 hours community service after being found guilty of breaching regulation 7(2) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and regulation 5(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Martin Waring said: “Falls from height are the biggest cause of death and serious injury in the construction industry. It is essential that equipment with the proper fall protection measures are provided to prevent incidents of this kind.
“The condition of the ladder was such that it should never have been used. Other more suitable equipment which was readily available on the site, such as a tower scaffold, this was not considered for this task by Hardev Singh and as a result, a man suffered major injuries that have had a significant impact on the rest of his life.”
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And it looks like the penalty would have been a lot higher if sentence had been passed after 1st February 2016 when the new sentencing guidelines come into force