Manual Handling Accident

An engineering firm was fined £7,500 last week as a result of an accident in which an employee lost his right thumb during a lifting operation.

Although equipment had been provided in the form of a rope sling, it snapped, causing steel weighing half a ton to fall and crush the employee’s thumb. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) showed that the sling had not been properly tested or checked and the employer had not carried out any risk assessments.

Dangerous Excavations

A London-based property company has been fined £2,800 after ignoring Notices issued by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

An inspection found a risk that an excavation would collapse and the company were ordered to stop work on the site and improve the planning, managing and monitoring of the operation. The orders were ignored, and it was revealed that this is not the first time this company had endangered its workers by failing to comply with HSE notices.