Distribution firm fined £150
000 A distribution firm has been fined £150 000 after a judge ruled a fatal accident
occurred because work pressures compromised safety.
Kevin Bolton died from internal injuries after a colleague's forklift truck reversed
into him, crushing him against his own vehicle on 4 August 1996. It is believed he stepped
out of his vehicle to shift a box that was in his way.
Wood Green Crown Court heard the firm, Fashion Logistics Ltd, which distributed sports
clothing, became overstocked, with goods stored on the floor, creating a danger to people
and vehicles. The warehouse in Enfield was laid out in narrow corridors, with the
forklifts running on rails in between. There was not enough space on either side of the
rails to allow a person to pass. Forklift trucks were sometimes two to an aisle, and
sometimes pedestrians were in an aisle with a truck. Until the last day of the defence
case, the firm denied five breaches of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. It then
pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to provide a safe system of work. The judge
directed the jury to find one charge not proved and three subsidiary charges remain on
file.
Fining the firm £150 000 on 29 September, and imposing costs of £69000, Judge Philip
Ader
said: "The pressure of work encouraged workers to break the rules. Sooner or later
there would be an accident.""Health and safety is a priority that must precede
profit," the Judge added. He was also critical that none of the firm's directors were
present in Court.
The 3-year delay in the case reaching court was due to the Crown Prosecution Service
considering a manslaughter charge, which it dropped.
Miranda Steward, Assistant Director for Environmental Services at Enfield Council,
which brought the prosecution, commented that Mr Bolton's death "would not have
happened if the company had applied common-sense to its operations."
www.healthandsafety.co.uk/new.htm
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