HSE Recent Enforcement Activity

Work at Height remains the single biggest cause of workplace deaths and one of the main causes of major injury.

3 June 2009 - HSE is urging construction companies to prevent falls from height after a carpenter fell over five metres while attempting to secure concrete shutters. The incident occurred during the construction of a new school in Waltham Forest in October 2007.

Bouygues (UK) Limited, based in London was fined £ 18,000 with costs of £ 2,796 after pleading guilty to Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The organisation was also ordered to pay the worker £5,000 compensation.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2009/coilon20609.htm?ebul=cons/jun09&cr=16

5 June 2009 - HSE is urging employers to ensure proper safety procedures are in place to prevent workers falling from height.

The call follows the prosecution of Heathrow Airport Ltd at City of London Magistrates Court after a contractor fell into a 2.2 metre deep gully whilst working from height on the roof of Terminal 1 at Heathrow Airport.

Heathrow Airport Ltd, based in London, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The court fined the company £10,000 and ordered them to pay costs of £3,130.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2009/coilon30609.htm?ebul=cons/jun09&cr=15

8 June 2009 - A Scottish construction company and one of its directors have been convicted of failing to ensure proper health and safety standards after the death of an employee.

Andrezej Freitag, a 53-year-old from Poland, fell nearly three metres down an exhaust shaft at a block of flats being built on Arbroath Road, Dundee. The incident happened because there was not a robust barrier on the edge of the shaft. Mr Freitag later died from his injuries.

At Dundee Sheriff Court, Discovery Homes (Scotland) Limited of Kinross, was fined £5,000 after pleading guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

Mr Richard Lionel John Pratt, a Director of the same company, who also performed the duties of site manager, was fined £4,000 after pleading guilty to breaching Section 37(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. This is only the second successful prosecution of a company director in Scotland in six years for a breach of health and safety legislation.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2009/coisco12009.htm?ebul=cons/jun09&cr=14

Further information:

Working at height

http://www.hse.gov.uk/falls/index.htm?ebul=cons/jun09&cr=4

HSE Shattered Lives campaign

http://www.hse.gov.uk/shatteredlives/construction/index.htm?ebul=cons/jun09&cr=5

Roofwork

http://www.hse.gov.uk/falls/roof.htm?ebul=cons/jun09&cr=6