A plastics manufacturer from Cambridgeshire has been fined £7,500 and ordered to pay full costs of £45,000 alongside a 15 month prison sentence (suspended for 2 years) following the death of an employee at their premises in Godmanchester.
Peterborough Crown Court were told how the Lithuanian agency worker, aged just 23, had been working in a print room for the company and had entered the printing machine to apply thinners to the ink. During the time she was inside the machine it suddenly began to function, and her head was crushed between the printing pads and the printing table of the machine. She sustained fatal injuries and died soon afterwards.
An investigation into the incident carried out by the HSE found that there was no effective system in place to guard the machine, and that the incident could have easily been avoided if suitable measures had been put in place.
The HSE and other bodies provide a wide range of information and advice on the safe use of equipment and machinery that, alongside some common sense, can help avoid unnecessary injuries and deaths in the workplace. The HSE website has guidance for:
- Designers and manufacturers of new products
- Suppliers and installers of work equipment
- Those purchasing and using equipment at work
- Those looking after work equipment
Employers have a legal responsibility to look after the health and safety of their employees. This includes looking in to any potentially dangerous situations and minimising the risk of injury for employees. By working through potential scenarios and ensuring that unexpected events are taken into account, proper risk assessments can save lives and reduce injuries.
If you have been injured at work and you believe that the incident could have been avoided, you should contact one of our solicitors today. We have a great deal of experience in dealing with these kinds of cases and will swiftly be able to see if you have a case, and if so, how much your compensation claim could be worth. It won’t cost you anything to talk to us, and if we do pursue and win the claim for you, it is most likely that any costs will be taken on by the opposing party. Contact us today and see how we can help you get the compensation you deserve.