Articles and Features
Weak footings led to city centre crane collapse
An incident in which a tower crane collapsed onto a nearby apartment block and seriously injured its operator has landed the site’s principal contractor with a £280,000 fine. A second firm, which has since stopped trading after going into voluntary liquidation, was fined a nominal £1000 for its part in the collapse.10 May 2012
£187k fine for Northern Ireland’s first corporate manslaughter conviction
A pig firm has been fined £187,500 after it became the first company to be convicted under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act in Northern Ireland.09 May 2012
Unsecured platform slid off truck fork
A steel firm that allowed a forklift truck to lift an unsecured working platform has been prosecuted after the platform slid off the forks and injured a nearby worker.03 May 2012
Schindler fined £300k for Heathrow T5 lift death
The death of an engineer at Heathrow Airport has cost lift manufacturer Schindler almost £470,000.02 Apr 2012
Forklift raised teen on pallet
A partner in a food products company has been fined after a teenage employee fell around two metres while unloading a shipping container attached to a heavy goods vehicle.19 Mar 2012
Beam see-sawed during manual handling
In a rare prosecution under the Manual Handling Operations Regulations, a building firm has been fined after a worker suffered serious injuries while lifting a 174kg concrete beam.27 Feb 2012
Missing skate destabilised 1.2 tonne lathe
A metal products manufacturer has been prosecuted after a 1.2 tonne lathe fell and crushed a worker’s leg as he helped move it between workshops.24 Feb 2012
Unsecured beam fell on cleaner
An incident in which a falling steel beam hit and killed a cleaner has brought two building companies to penalties totalling £94,000. The director of one of the companies had noted the hazardous position of the beam before the incident.09 Feb 2012
Director and building firm pay £178k for LOLER breaches
A construction firm and its director have been ordered to pay more than £178,000 in penalties after the boom on a mini-crawler crane struck and killed a worker at one of its sites in London.01 Feb 2012
Crane contractor neglected maintenance
Drax Power and Konecranes UK have been fined after a 13kg weight dropped nearly four metres from an overhead crane, fracturing a worker’s foot.31 Jan 2012
UPDATED: Grab fatality costs JN Bentley £196k
Civil engineering contractor JN Bentley has been ordered to pay fines and costs of more than £196,000 after a judge rejected its argument that its breach of the Health and Safety at Work Act was not to blame for an employee’s death.31 Jan 2012
Excavator boom hit M1 bridge
An incident in which an excavator’s boom struck a bridge on the M1 motorway has cost an engineering contractor more than £42,000 in penalties.24 Jan 2012
Incompetent planning led to lifting death and £180k fine
A specialist crane supplier has been ordered to pay £254,000 in penalties after a suspended steel beam fell five metres, fatally crushing a worker.16 Jan 2012
Scaffolding firm ignored crane hook’s faulty catch
A scaffolding contractor that failed to replace a faulty safety catch on a crane hook has been ordered to pay £85,000 after a worker was hit by 1.5 tonnes of falling metal tubes.10 Jan 2012
First aid failings lead Palletways to £100k penalty
Logistics firm Palletways (UK) must pay more than £100,000 in fines and costs after “a string of management failings” delayed access to medical treatment when a forklift driver broke his neck.09 Jan 2012
Six-tonne column killed worker in crane collapse
A building firm and its managing director have been fined after a worker was crushed to death by a steel column when a 50-tonne crane overturned in Liverpool in 2007.19 Dec 2011
‘Disgraceful’ lifting practice ended in death
Two companies have been fined a total of £100,000 following the death of a maintenance worker who fell from a forklift truck.12 Dec 2011
Fatal MEWP fall lands Amey Infrastructure venture with £125k penalty
Two construction companies have been fined after an employee fell eight metres from an aged cherry picker.02 Dec 2011
11-tonne prefab crushed banksman’s fingers
A poorly planned routine lifting operation that left a worker with permanent hand injuries has cost an off-site construction company more than £22,000 in penalties.10 Nov 2011
Botched lift crushed worker under 1.5 tonne frame
Engineer Parker Plant has been fined £180,000 after an employee was crushed to death by a 1.5-tonne steel frame.31 Oct 2011
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