A food manufacturing firm has been ordered to pay 94,523 pounds as fines and costs, after one of its employees had three fingers crushed in a packing machine.
The accident occurred at Tulip Limited’s
An investigation into the cause of the accident revealed that the company had not provided sufficient training to the victim and that the machine did not have the required guarding. Thereafter, Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted the firm.
In a court hearing, the company accepted liability for failing to prevent access to dangerous parts of the machinery and for ignoring to make a risk assessment of the Multivac machine. It also pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. Norwich Crown Court recently ordered Tulip to pay a fine of 65,000 pounds and costs of 29,523 pounds.
Talking about the case, HSE Inspector Steven Gill said machines like these can be dangerous and can cause serious injury. He pointed out that the company should have adopted a serious approach towards such risks. He called it a nasty accident and said that it could have been avoided had Tulip checked the safety standards of the machine and taken precautions to protect its staff.
Gill also revealed that the company had ignored the machines’ risks despite identifying the guarding defect in its audit report. He was of the view that all companies need to identify the defects in their machines and ensure that these defects are remedied without delay.
Gill also asked employers to ensure that all workers, including those whose first language is not English, receive proper training on the use of machinery.
The health and safety consultants from workplace Law Training offer a range of services, and can help in managing the consequences of incidents and accidents; to identify and make recommendations of an accident investigation aimed at preventing a re-occurrence with the aim to get your business up and running in the event of an accident or an improvement or prohibition notice.