JCB Group firms fined £466,000 after two deaths

Prosecutions and Claims |
17.03.2008

Two firms in the JCB Group have been fined a total of £466,000 after two employees were killed in separate incidents.

JCB Earthmovers was prosecuted following the death of Darren Ellis at its manufacturing plant in Cheadle, Staffordshire, on 16 November 2005.

Ellis, who worked as a welder, was testing the fuel tank of an earthmoving machine for leaks. He was standing close to the tank when the inspection plate blew off and he suffered fatal head injuries.

The HSE's investigation revealed Ellis had insufficient training for the job and that he had connected a high-pressure airline instead of a low-pressure airline. The low and high-pressure airlines were similar and had identical connectors.

JCB Earthmovers admitted breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety Act (HSWA) and on 14 March at Stafford Crown Court was fined £200,000 plus £31,366 costs.

On the same day, JC Bamford Excavators was fined £266,000 and ordered to pay costs of £31,701 after pleading guilty to the same offence following the death of employee Paul McNamara.

McNamara suffered fatal head injuries after being crushed by the boom of an excavating machine (a backhoe loader) at the company's site in Rocester, Staffordshire, on 11 September 2006.

It was common practice for workers at the site to operate the controls for the boom standing outside the cab and leaning in through the back window. On this occasion, a hydraulic system fault meant the control lever did not work properly and the boom carried on moving, trapping McNamara.

HSE inspector Lynne Boulton said: "Both these tragic deaths were not only regrettable but also entirely preventable.

"All employers must learn from these tragedies that, whatever the task, it is crucial to undertake a suitable risk assessment that deals with the significant risks of that task.
 
"Even employers with the most responsible attitude to health and safety can put lives at risk if they do not maintain constant vigilance. The importance of appropriate health and safety procedures cannot be overstated."