Health and safety update - September 2020

Welcome to this month's health and safety update. View the headlines below or click the pdf at the bottom of the page to read the full articles.

Fines and sentences

Department for Work and Pensions reprimanded by HSE for insufficient social distancing at “The Kremlin”

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been warned after the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found COVID-19 related contraventions of health and safety law after a visit to its Leeds Quarry House office, known locally as “The Kremlin” because of its architecture. Read more

Fatality caused while using high pressure water jetting equipment at car manufacturing site leads to £2M fine

On 18 June 2017, Joseph McDonald, an employee of specialist industrial services company Leadec Limited, sustained fatal injuries when he was struck by the end of a flexi lance. Read more

Three Construction firms receive fines totalling a quarter of a million after demolition fatality

Substantial fines were imposed on the firms after a worker suffered fatal injuries while demolishing a building in preparation for a development project on the Isle of Wight. Read more

£200k fine for firm after forklift driven over worker’s foot

A maritime freight and logistics company, Simec Ports (UK) Limited, has been fined £200,000 after one of its workers sustained multiple fractures after a forklift truck was driven over his foot. Read more

Suspended sentence for illegal sale of weight loss drug DNP

A man has been given an 8-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, and 300 hours of unpaid work after pleading guilty to a number of offences, including illegally selling DNP for human consumption. Read more

HSE issues Crown Censure to MoD

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) received a Crown Censure by the HSE after a military diver died during a training exercise. Read more

Blackpool frozen food firm receives penalties totalling £41,000 for selling unfit and out of date food

Eezi Freeze Wholesale Limited, a company which supplies schools, hotels and restaurants, was prosecuted after it was found to be selling food unfit for human consumption and out of date. Read more

Fatal crushing leads to £120k fine

Scapa UK Limited, a manufacturer of adhesive tape, was fined £120,000 after one of its workers was fatally injured whilst operating a rewind slitting machine. Read more

Bakery fined after worker’s hand amputated in bagel machine

Mr Bagel’s Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11 of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 following an incident which occurred on 2 October 2017 when a worker’s hand was amputated after being caught in a bagel production line. Read more

Independent consultant fined for providing ‘incompetent’ advice

Clive Weal, a self-employed independent health and safety consultant, has been fined after giving advice which was found to have exposed the employees of his clients, which ranged from small to medium sized companies, to risks to their health and safety. Read more

Environmental

Plumpton College prosecuted by the Environment Agency after contaminating local stream with slurry

This prosecution followed an incident in November 2016 when the head herdsman at the College, Stuart Duncan, spread contaminated water with a high amount of cow slurry as fertiliser across a field at Wales Farm, which was owned by Plumpton College. Read more

Tech firm’s failure to comply with recycling requirements help pay for mass tree planting at East London Site via an environmental sanction

EMC Computer Systems (UK) Ltd failed to register the packaging waste it produced in 2002 – 2003 and 2008 – 2015. Businesses with a turnover in excess of £2M handling more than 50 tonnes of packaging are required to register with an accredited compliance scheme and recover and recycle packaging waste. Read more

Round-up

HSE undertaking spot inspections in high-risk areas

As highlighted in the article above about the DWP office in Leeds, the HSE has been undertaking spot-checks to ensure businesses are operating in a suitably safe way. The HSE has confirmed that they are now focusing in areas that have been subject to COVID-19 rule tightening, including Oldham, Pendle and Greater Manchester. Read more

Civil Aviation Authority publishes new guidance for crane users

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has published an updated version of its guidance CAP1096: Guidance to crane users on the crane notification process and obstacle lighting and marking. Read more

Government introduces Draft Building Safety Bill

The Government has published the Draft Building Safety Bill, which sets out a stringent new safety regime for higher risk residential buildings (HRRBs) over 18m or six storeys high. As drafted, the Bill will amend the Building Act 1984. The new legislation would be backed by a new Building Safety Regulator, which will be branch of the HSE. Read more

HSE statistics show 25% fall in workplace fatalities in 2019/2020

The HSE has published its figures for workplace fatalities in the year to 31 March 2020. The total number of deaths were 111, which was a 25% drop on the previous year’s figure of 149 and also the lowest annual figure on record. Read more