Firm fined £5,000 for accident at work
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Mechanic injured by reversing tipper van in poorly managed yard
A COMMERCIAL VEHICLE. rental company has been tined 13.000 after an employee suffered bruising and swelling to his lower legs when he was hit by a tipper van.
SHB Hire pleaded guilty at Westminster Magistrates' Court to breaching section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 after mechanic Matthew Stevens, from Brentford, was struck by a reversing Ford Transit 350 tipper at the firm's Southall. West London, yard on 29 January 2008.
The court was told an SHB mechanic was asked to repair a vehicle at the site and in order to get the vehicle from the yard, he needed to reverse the parked Transit. Stevens, who was cleaning a different vehicle at the time, saw the reversing tipper coming towards him. lie tried
to get out of the way by jumping on to the bonnet of the vehicle he was cleaning, but his legs were hit by the tipper.
SI IB Hire was also ordered to pay costs of E2.815.
Following the incident, an improvement notice was served by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) ordering SHB I tire to segregate pedestrians and organise the yard area.
The notice was complied with and the company has since taken action to sepa
rate the valeting area and a neighbouring school's car park.
Jack Wilby, HSE inspector, says: "SHB Hire failed to properly manage the risks and control the movement of its vehicles at its Southall site, ultimately leading to a worker becoming injured.
"While the injuries in this case were minor, the poor conditions of the yard and the failure to adequately manage the risks could have easily resulted in a more serious injury."