An East Yorkshire company has been prosecuted and fined more than half a million pounds after a fatal fall of night shift worker.
The Facts
The 51-year-old was an employee at a manufacturer of paper sacks near York, when the incident happened on 11th February 2023.
The employee had been operating one of the company’s production lines when a machinery blockage occurred on the upper deck. The Operator had identified the cause and had then he attempted to remove the blockage.
He had been standing on the stationery metal rollers when his colleagues witnessed part of the machine being activated. The Operative was struck by the machine which caused him to lose his footing, and he fell approximately three metres from the unguarded edge of the metal rollers to the factory floor below.
Paramedics were immediately called to the factory, but unfortunately, the employee died at the scene as a result of his injuries.
Critically, falls from height remains one of the leading causes of workplace fatalities and serious injuries in the UK.
HSE Investigation
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the company had failed to provide a robust safe system of work. This related to the isolation of the sack making line and the removal of blockages. They also failed to identify the risk from a fall from height and implement appropriate measures.
The HSE investigation also found that workers routinely cleared blockages themselves, relying solely on the interlock guarding to stop the machine, even though they had not been adequately trained in isolation or blockage removal procedures. In addition, workers were using the conveyor belt as a shortcut between gantries, often climbing over the handrails onto the equipment rather than down the stairs and walking around. Management were unaware of this practice.
HSE Guidance
HSE guidance states employers must take effective measures to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery and to avoid work at height where possible. Where routine access is required to components, suitable measures should be taken to stop the movement of dangerous parts before a person can reach a danger zone. Further guidance can be found here: https://www.hse.gov.uk/work-equipment-machinery/puwer-overview.htm Also, the HSE has detailed guidance on working safely at height.
Outcome
The company recently pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (H&S@WA).
The H&S@WA Sect 2(1)
Weblink: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1974/37/section/2
General Duties of Employers to Their Employees.
It shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees.
The company was fined £533,000 and ordered to pay £6,066 in costs at Hull Magistrates Court on 30 April 2025.
HSE Statement:
The HSE Inspector said after the hearing: “every year, a significant proportion of accidents, many of them serious and often fatal, occur as a result of people accessing dangerous parts of machinery and working at height”.
“Where access beyond machinery guarding and safety devices is required for the removal of blockages, robust isolation procedures to remove all sources of power should be implemented alongside a suitable safe system of work”.
“Had these been in place, and the recognition of work at height being undertaken been flagged by the company, with appropriate controls implemented, this incident would have been avoidable”
Comment
An employer must ensure their workplace is safe and that all activities are:
- Any new machinery/equipment should suitably and sufficiently risk assessed, to identify all safety control measures including adequate guarding to prevent human intervention, clearing of blockages, maintenance activities, setting etc.
- Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulation (PUWER) Conformity Assessment has been undertaken to ensure compliance with the regulations.
- Assessments are adequately recorded and carried out be competent personnel.
- The Responsible Person (RP) should ensure reasonably practicable control measures are also implemented – for example, training staff on the correct use of machinery.
- Lock-out/Tag-out (Lo/To) procedures are also a very important safety control measure and should be in place and robustly enforced at all times when access to machinery (possibly to remove blockages). Lo/To, should isolate any power supply sources, including any stored energy.
- Management must ensure adequate supervision is provided and safe working procedures are strictly enforced at all times.
- All work at height activities is thoroughly planned, risk assessed, supervised and controlled.
Are you confident your business activities are carried out safely?
If you are not sure: perhaps you should consider a site inspection to review your current site activities, practices and whether your Health and Safety measures are suitable and sufficient.
