Lorry fall delivers TNT £120,000 fine

Prosecutions and Claims |
08.11.2007

The death of a lorry driver in a 2m fall off a loaded vehicle has cost haulage firm TNT Logistics (now CEVA Logistics) almost £150,000 in fines and costs.

Derek Howe suffered fatal injuries in May 2004 when he fell off the side of a curtain-sided lorry parked at TNT's premises in Irlam, Manchester. He was working with a colleague trying to manoeuvre a long kitchen worktop while standing on top of other worktops on the vehicle.

The lorry curtains were open and when Howe toppled off the side, he fell just over two metres onto the concrete yard below.

"There weren't really clear measures and instructions in place to prevent workers climbing onto loads," HSE inspector Richard Clarke told HSW. Goods were sometimes put on the lorries in the wrong order, which increased the likelihood of people having to climb onto and across loads. TNT should "have better identified what was happening in practice," he said.

"Climbing on top of loads should be avoided wherever possible and permanent platforms or gantries may help with this."

Eleven days after Howe's accident, the HSE served an Improvement Notice on the company requiring it to carry out a suitable and sufficient risk assessment. The notice referred to "insufficient written significant findings" in the firm's risk assessment documents for climbing onto loads, pallets or other items on lorries used for kitchen and furniture contracts. TNT complied with the notice within the time laid down.    

At Manchester Crown Court on 11 October, Judge Bernard Lever fined the firm £120,000, together with £28,185 costs, after it admitted failing to ensure employee safety as required under Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act.

The HSE has recently brought together advice on how to control the risks from falls during vehicle loading and unloading. Its interactive site at www.hse.gov.uk/fallsfromvehicles/index.htm includes safety checklists and practical guidance on what other companies have done.