Latest Business Insurance News
Lorry driver killed by mound of soya meal
A Cobham animal feed company was fined £600,000 and ordered to pay costs of £20,095.10 after a lorry driver was buried alive under a mound of soya meal. The 64-year-old driver was working on the terminal dock when the stockpiled meal collapsed onto him and killed him. In its investigation, the HSE found that the company had failed to assess the risks present to nonemployees such as hired lorry drivers.
A tyre factory oversight leads to worker’s death
A tyre manufacturer was fined £150,000 and ordered to pay £46,706 in prosecution costs after an employee was trapped in an industrial autoclave for more than two hours and died. The 48-year-old employee had entered the autoclave, which heats rubber tyre beads to 145 degrees Celsius, to collect fallen beads. However, the employee became trapped after the door sealed shut with no way to escape. The HSE found that the manufacturer failed to identify the autoclave as an enclosed space and provide methods of escape for individuals who may be trapped inside. A confined works permit could possibly have saved the employee’s life.
Farming family’s negligence causes toddler mauling
A Derbyshire farming family was fined a combined amount of £9,000 and ordered to pay a combined total of £2,000 in costs after a three-year-old’s foot was pulled into a grain auger. The unidentified child was walking around the barn floor where grain was being moved into an auger when his foot became caught in the auger—causing deep lacerations that required surgery and several days in hospital to recuperate. The HSE found that the family had not installed the proper safety precautions — restricted access, safety guards and rails—to prevent child injuries.
Vicar refused service at bar for wearing sandals
An Ipswich vicar was denied entry into a local wine bar due to his footwear—sandals. The 58-year-old vicar was told that his choice of footwear unnecessarily exposed him to the risk of a dropped glass or bottle injuring his foot. Despite citing health and safety concerns, the wine bar should not refuse potential patrons based upon their choice of footwear, according to the HSE.
