An engineering fabrication firm based in Warrington has been fined £22,000 after a worker suffered severe injuries when he was crushed by a metal frame which toppled from a forklift truck
Liverpool Magistrates’ Court heard how, on 11 October 2017, the employee of engineering fabrication firm, J L Engineering (Rixton) Ltd, together with another worker, was moving a trestle frame using a forklift truck (FLT). In an attempt to release the metal frame, which was catching the wheels of the truck, the driver loosened the securing straps. This caused the frame to topple from the FLT onto the employee who suffered multiple severe fractures and an erupted bladder. He is still receiving medical treatment and has been unable to return to work.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) discovered the engineering fabrication company had not prepared a suitable risk assessment or lifting plan for lifting operations and had failed to recognise the risks associated with the way its employees were working. Employees were not adequately trained or instructed in methods of carrying out lifting operations safely.
J L Engineering (Rixton) Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching of Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and has been fined £22,000 and ordered to pay costs of £5,895.32.
HSE inspector Catherine Lyon said: “The employees injuries in this case were life-changing and could have been fatal. Employees were put at risk as a result of the company allowing forklift trucks to be used without the appropriate training and monitoring of drivers.
“Employers have a responsibility to provide safe methods of working and to ensure workers have the necessary information and training to enable them to work without risk.”
