01/09/2015
A principle contractor and a construction company (in liquidation) were both fined £200,000 with £17, 790 costs after a worker fell through an opening in the glass canopy above the Debenhams store in Exeter.
The deceased was working for specialist construction company London Fenestration Trades Ltd, which was contracted by principal contractor, Sir Robert McAlpine to undertake remedial repair works to a glass façade above an entrance to a department store in Princess Hay, Exeter on 9th November 2011.
During his work, he fell 4.5 metres through a completely unsecured opening in the glass canopy above the store front and died in hospital from his injuries.
Unacceptable Negligence in Health and Safety Matters
The opening in the glass canopy had been created during previous maintenance works and had never been closed. The subsequent investigation found numerous health and safety breaches, including the fact that the glass canopy on which the deceased was working was not a safe working platform as there was no edge protection and there was the large opening through which he subsequently fell. The court was also told neither of the deceased and his co-worker who was also on the canopy should have left the safety of the working platform basket.
HSE inspector Jonathan Harris said: “The risks associated with work at height are very well known and recognised in readily available guidance. Planning and effective coordination between contractors is a requirement of the relevant safety regulations. Without such planning and sufficient assessment of risk, it is foreseeable that working at height will expose operatives to risks to their safety.”
“In this case Mr Evans was working from an unsafe position which exposed him to the potential of falling from the edge of the glass canopy as well as the opening through which he tragically fell.”
Health and Safety Legislative Breaches
Section 3(1) of The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 states that, as far as reasonably practical, employers should ensure their workers are not exposed to unnecessary risks. The principle contractor, Sir Robert McAlpine pleaded guilty to breaching this section.
London Fenestration Trades Ltd, the deceased employer, pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1) of The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 which states employers have a duty to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his or her employees.
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