Company Fined £130,000 after Worker’s Death
Veolia Environmental Services was slapped with a fine of £130,000 and ordered to pay costs of £220,000 after an employee was killed during work. The tragedy occurred when a recycling bin, having come detached from a faulty bin hoist, fell on the garbage collector’s head.
The unfortunate incident took place on 5 May 2004 when 56 year old David Ives was collecting waste around the premises of a pub in Easington. Following the accident, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Veolia Environmental Services (VES) based on the findings of its investigations.
The case was heard at the Aylesbury Crown Court where the jury declared the company guilty of contravening sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
The HSE investigation revealed that the tragic event occurred due to the negligence to basic safety precautions on part of the employers. If the equipment had been regularly overhauled and periodically checked as required by law, the incident could have been avoided. The company had failed to ensure that the bin hoist on the recycling lorry was fit for use, the investigating inspector pointed out.
HSE Inspector Dennis MacWilliam regretted the unfortunate death of the worker and reiterated the importance of proper safety measures at the workplace.
Richard Berry, Executive Director of the employer, expressed his sympathies to the grieving family and said that it was unfortunate that the victim was killed in such a tragic manner while on duty. He accepted that the moral and legal responsibility towards worker safety lay with the company. He also said that several measures were already in place to keep employees safe, however these had failed in this case.
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