Edinburgh Company Fined £12,000 After Employee is Crushed by Lorry
Posted: August 25, 2014
Posted in: Employer Negligence Head and Brain Injuries Workplace Injuries
Macfarlan Smith Limited, a pharmaceutical company based in Edinburgh has pled guilty to failing to ensure the health and safety of an employee in relation to an incident where a reversing lorry crushed the employee‘s head and chest.
Alexander Mackenzie, was emploed at Macfarlan Smith Limited and was working at the company’s Wheatfield Road premises in Edinburgh when the incident occurred. Mr MacKenzie attempted to signal a reversing lorry into a loading bay however the driver did not see him, as he was watching another employee who was also signalling to the lorry driver. Mr MacKenzie was as a result crushed between the lorry and the wall of the loading bay suffering injuries to his head, face and chest.
The Health and Safety Executive investigated the case and found that no suitable risk assessment has been carried out for this task. Also it was deemed that there was no safe system of work and that the accident could have been prevented had reasonably practical precautions been taken.
Macfarlan Smith Limited pled guilty to contraventions of Section 2(1) and Section 33(1)(a) of the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 and was fined £12,000. Gary Aitken, Head of the COPFS Health & Safety Division said:
“Macfarlan Smith Limited accepted liability and the Crown accepted their guilty plea to the contraventions of the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974. Since this incident the company has introduced new risk assessments and has put into practice safe systems of work. This was an entirely avoidable accident which resulted in the severe injury of an employee that has thankfully had no long lasting effect.”
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