A Lincolnshire based company has been fined after a worker was injured dismantling a HGV tipper lorry.
In April 2015 two employees of R Martinson Limited were dismantling a HGV lorry. To aid them in the task, the employees were using a telehandler truck, used as a mobile crane, to help them complete the lifting operations of the task.
One of the workers operated the telehandler to remove a metal rail, which weighed 44kg, from the chassis. Whilst completing the manoeuvre, the rail struck the second employee, who sustained a traumatic skull fracture that has left him with permanent injuries. As a result of his injuries, the employee was unable to return to work and is reliant on his family to care for him.
Following the incident, an investigation carried out by Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that R Martinson Limited had failed to plan, control or supervise the operating task. It was also highlighted that the company’s decision to utilise a telehandler in the same way as a mobile crane, to lift and move parts, was a high risk activity an they had failed to apply the basic principles of health and safety management in order to reduce the risk of accident or injury to employees on site.
R Martinson Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work ect. Act 1974. They received a fine of £53,000, with further costs of £1,293.10.
Source: SHP Online, Company dismantling HGV fined for safety failings, 4th August 2016. Read the full article from SHP Online.