Vehicle body builder fined after workers pinned between vehicles

Open-access content Tuesday 24th May 2016

From the archive: Just so you know, this article is more than 3 years old.

On 12 January 2015 a Commercial Body Specialists worker was maneuvering the 18-tonne vehicle at the company's workshop in Stoke-on-Trent. As he did so he struck two co-workers, pinning them between the moving lorry and two stationary vehicles. One worker sustained pelvis and rib fractures and internal bladder and kidney lacerations, while the other's legs were crushed. A third employee managed to jump out of the way.

The Health and Safety Executive's investigation into what happened found the company had not assessed the risks of workplace transport and failed to put in place protective measures, safe systems of work and proper instruction and training.

Commercial Body Specialists pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work Act at North Staffordshire Magistrates' Court. It was fined £20,000 plus costs of £4,461.

Truck driver ran over Royal Mail worker’s foot

Friday 20th May 2016

The accident happened at Royal Mail’s bundling centre in Rochester, Kent, on 7 March 2014, when a worker stepped out into an aisle and his foot was crushed by the truck. He was not wearing steel-capped safety boots and sustained broken bones. Pedestrians and vehicles operated in the warehouse without segregation. The Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) investigation found that the workplace transport was not organised to ensure that both could circulate safely.

Open-access content

Members of the ISO 45001 work group meeting in Trinidad in January 2015 to discuss the international standard.

ISO 45001 suffers setback

Monday 16th May 2016

Participating members - the national standards bodies elected to work on the development of the draft international standard (DIS) - were balloted between 12 February and 12 May on whether to approve it.Seventy-one per cent voted in favour, with 28% against (1% abstained). For the DIS to have passed, two-thirds of members had to be in favour and less than a quarter against, taking into account abstentions.

Open-access content

Road sweeper was fatally crushed refuelling vehicle

Thursday 2nd June 2016

Derby Crown Court heard how on 26 November 2013 Matthew Lambert, 39, was standing at the back of the road sweeper to access the refuelling point when a tipper lorry reversed into him. He was crushed between the two vehicles and died from catastrophic head injuries. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found there were no marked or identified vehicle and pedestrian routes, there were no rules or control of reversing manoeuvres, and the lighting at the site was poor and below the required standard.

Open-access content

Fine for haulage company after worker crushed on Christmas eve

Tuesday 7th June 2016

On 24 December 2014, J. & J Currie was delivering and offloading a vehicle from a trailer at Galloway Forest, when the hydraulic ramp developed a fault and failed to lower.Andrew Adams, who was accompanied by a delivery driver, attempted to carry out a repair by removing a valve. However, this caused hydraulic pressure to be released and the ramp collapsed on the 61 year old.A ratchet strap, used to secure the ramp, also failed due to its poor condition, Ayr Sheriff Court heard.

Open-access content

Travis Perkins fined £2 million after customer died in store car park

Tuesday 3rd May 2016

On 9 November 2012, Mark John Porter was loading timber onto the roof of his Land Rover at Travis Perkins’ Milton Keynes store, when one of the cargo straps holding the planks snapped and he fell.At the same time, a flatbed vehicle was manoeuvring into a space between Porter’s vehicle and another lorry that was parked in the branch’s loading area. Porter was run over by the lorry and died following crush injuries to his chest.

Open-access content

Royal Mail installed warehouse barrier after foot crushing

Thursday 16th June 2016

As we reported last month, reach trucks operated in close proximity to workers who were on foot sorting commercial leaflets at the bundling tables. Here, leaflets were weighed, packed together and put into cages which had to be rolled into storage lanes ready for collection by delivery vehicles.

Open-access content

Topics

Workplace transport

Manufacturing and engineering

Transport and logistics

News