Firms prosecuted after worker loses left leg

Lady dressed formally explaining the dismissal procedure

A factory worker had to have part of his left leg amputated after he was struck by an 850kg metal frame being delivered to a process plant, a court has heard.

Two firms have been ordered to pay nearly £50,000 in fines and costs following an investigation into the incident by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

The Crown Court heard that the injured worker, a truck driver, had been delivering the five-metre long rectangular frame to the plant after it had been manufactured by his employer.

The frame, known as a skid, had been loaded onto a pickup truck at an angle using an overhead crane and chains, with the top end resting on a supporting bar above the driver’s cab.

When the frame arrived at the plant, workers lifted it off the truck using the same chains, this time attached to a forklift truck.

The chains consisted of two separate sets, one of which was significantly shorter than the other to allow for the angle of the lift. As they lifted the frame, the shorter chains – attached to the higher side – forced their way out from the hook on the forklift truck. The frame fell around two metres to the ground and landed on the truck driver’s left foot.

The damage was so severe that his leg eventually had to be amputated to above the knee for medical reasons.

The court was told neither of the companies had planned how they were going to safely lift the metal frame onto and off the truck, and that both the truck and the lifting equipment were entirely unsuitable for the job.

The frame manufacturing company also failed to make adequate arrangements for the metal frame to be transported safely.
The company who took delivery of the frame, pleaded guilty to a single breach of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations, by failing to ensure the work was
properly planned, appropriately supervised and carried out in safety, was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay £8,735 towards the cost of the prosecution.

The frame manufacturing company was fined £11,917 with costs of £13,734 after being found guilty of a breach of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 following a trial.

Speaking after the hearing, an HSE Inspector said,

“The failings of both companies contributed to this incident, which could so easily have been avoided had more thought gone into the planning of the loading, unloading and transport of the metal frame. The methods adopted for both the loading at the frame manufacturer and the unloading at the customer premises, were inherently unsafe and the vehicle used to transport the frame was unsuitable, as the loading area was too small to safely accommodate it. Unfortunately the failings of the two companies have led to a worker suffering life changing and permanently disabling injuries.”

Get more information

Pop in your details and we'll call you straight back

We'll get back to you as soon as we can.