An aircraft engineering company has been fined £165k and ordered to pay £5.4k legal costs after an employee and an agency worker were seriously injured in a workplace accident at an airport, whilst working on the tail of a plane.
The accident initiated an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive who then discovered that two men fell nearly 5 metres from platforms which were knocked over as a result of human error. The HSE found that another employee accidentally closed the wrong circuit breaker which caused the planes airbrake to open which then destabilised both platforms.
The workers were carrying out checks at the tail of an aeroplane at the time of the accident and both sustained serious injuries with one 62-year-old man suffering a broken back, three broken ribs, and three fractures to his pelvis, a fractured elbow and a punctured right lung. The second worker fared better, a 60 year old man, sustained a broken wrist and a chipped a bone on his spine.
A Magistrates’ Court heard that the HSE investigation found a lack of monitoring of the dangerous work being carried out and that there was no suitable risk assessment of the job. As a result of the HSE’s findings, the engineering company pleaded guilty to breaches under Sections 2 and 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
An HSE Inspector said: “Both of these men suffered shocking injuries after falling from height, which could easily have been a double fatality. Our investigation found the incident could have been avoided had adequate monitoring been taking place. Aircraft maintenance companies are reminded that not all risks are covered by the Aircraft Maintenance Manual and additional measures need to be introduced.”
Accidents at work can be embarrassing, stressful and in worst cases, life changing! We often blame ourselves when they happen but were you given the right tools, information and equipment to do the job safely? Was the job risk assessed and properly supervised? Were you given the proper training to do the job? Are all the tools and machinery maintained and fit for purpose?
If you are unsure if you are at fault or not then speak to one of our specialist solicitors who find out for you and will handle every aspect of your work accident compensation claim, providing the support and expertise you deserve.
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