Britain’s safety regulator has today, 25 October, issued a safety notice on the use of wheeled loading shovels, widely used in the waste and recycling sector.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) notice follows nine fatal vehicle-pedestrian collisions in the past four years. Six of these occurred in the waste and recycling sector, with the remainder involved moving wood chip.

HSE has identified issues of poor visibility caused by the bucket and load, the engine at the rear and the cab pillars, significantly reducing the drivers’ ability to see pedestrians and, to a lesser extent, other vehicles. The use of larger capacity buckets, which has become common practice where low-density material is being moved, makes forward visibility significantly worse.

Regulation 4 of The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) requires machinery to be suitable for the purpose for which it is used. This also applies if the equipment is adapted, for example by fitting a larger bucket.

Manufacturers and other specialist suppliers have attempted to address the problem by adding ‘visibility slots’ or mesh at the top of buckets, but evidence from investigations suggests these are ineffective when the bucket is in the carry position or obscured by the load. Camera systems have been under development for some time, but their effectiveness remains unproven and are not widely available.

Head of HSE’s Waste and Recycling team, HM Principal Inspector of Health and Safety, Tim Small, commented:

“Poorly planned use of wheeled loading shovels can have fatal consequences. This safety notice reminds duty holders who use these machines of the need to fully assess and actively manage the risk of vehicle-pedestrian collisions. Currently, the only effective control measure is strict segregation of vehicles and pedestrians. If you cannot ensure that segregation, you should not use larger capacity buckets or wheeled loaders, but employ alternative work methods such as using different machinery and/or site management arrangements.

“Before using wheeled loaders – or making changes to them – you should review your workplace transport risk assessments to ensure they will be safe to use in your environment and in the way you intend to use them. By implementing appropriate risk controls, needless pedestrian deaths could be avoided.”

The safety notice can be viewed here.

• ENDS –

Notes to editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. hse.gov.uk
2. The safety notice can be viewed here.
3. Further information

Workplace transport safety – A guide to workplace transport safety (HSG136)

Workplace transport safety checklist (hse.gov.uk)

Safe Transport at Waste and Recycling Sites WASTE 09 – Waste Industry Safety and Health Forum (WISH)

Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) – Work equipment and machinery

Hand Sorting of Recyclables (‘Totting’) With Vehicle Assistance WASTE 18 – Waste Industry Safety and Health Forum (WISH)

A site supervisor has been sentenced for safety breaches after a 46-year-old worker became entangled in a conveyor belt sustaining serious injuries to his hand and arm.

Leeds’ Crown Court heard that, on 20 October 2016, an operative was working on a conveyor belt on an automated waste picking line at Associated Waste Management (AWM) Ltd in Canal Road, Bradford, when it became damaged and needed repair. Whilst the operative was working to repair the conveyor line, it started moving and his arm became entangled, which caused muscle and tissue damage.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that AWM site supervisor Andrew Hughes, who had control of the site in the absence of the site manager, was responsible for completing a permit for the repair work and isolating the line. However, on his way to complete the permit he became distracted with another matter and the permit to work and isolation were not completed. This meant that the conveyor belt restarted during the repair work injuring the employee.

Andrew Hughes of Heathmoor Park Road, Illingworth, Halifax, West Yorkshire pleaded guilty to breaching Section 7 (1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974. He was given a four-month prison sentence suspended for 12 months and ordered to pay costs of £1,000.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Darian Dundas said: “Mr Hughes failed to implement company policy and procedure in respect of permits to work and isolation.

“This incident could so easily have been avoided by simply carrying out correct control measures and safe working practices.”

Notes to Editors:
1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. www.hse.gov.uk
2. More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/
3. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk[3
4. Please see the link below to the page on HSE’s website that is the best guide to doing it the right way: https://www.hse.gov.uk/safemaintenance/permits.htm

A car manufacturing company has been fined after an employee became trapped and suffered crush injuries whilst unloading a chassis from a delivery vehicle.

Kidderminster Magistrates’ Court heard that the employee became trapped between the trolley holding the chassis and a parked vehicle when the delivery vehicle moved.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) into the incident, which occurred on 18 April 2018, found that the company did not have a safe system of work for unloading chassis.  The risks should have been controlled by offloading the chassis using a forklift truck or implementing a formalised system of work to safely unload them by hand.

 Morgan Motor Company Manufacturing Limited of Pickersleigh Road, Malvern, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.  The company has been fined £60,000.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Elizabeth Thomas said: “A safe system of work should have been in place and this shows that even large, well-established companies can get things wrong”.

 Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. hse.gov.uk
2. More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: legislation.gov.uk/
3. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk

A Lincolnshire-based food manufacturer has been fined after one of its employees sustained two broken ribs having been crushed within an industrial cooking machine whilst working to clear a blocked water inlet.

Lincoln Magistrates’ Court heard how the employee was crushed in the machine after its safety systems were over-ridden and the machine worked on whilst it was live. It should have been isolated before work on it began.

An investigation carried out by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the task was carried out by the employees in this fashion on a regular basis and that the company should have been aware .  No risk assessment of the task had been completed and employees had not been provided with a safe system of work to carry it out.  The lack of a safe system of work for the task and the company’s failure to monitor how the work was done, led employees to devise their own way of conducting the procedure which included  over-riding the safety systems and using unsafe working practices.

Bakkavor Fresh Cook Ltd of Sluice Road, Holbeach St Marks Spalding pleaded guilty of one breach of Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and were fined £130,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2607.10.

At the end of the trial HSE inspector Tim Nicholson commented: “Those in control of work have a responsibility to devise safe methods of working and to provide the necessary information, instruction and training to their workers.  If a suitable safe system of work had been in place prior to this incident, alongside good monitoring of the way the work was done, the injuries sustained by the employee could have been prevented.”

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. hse.gov.uk
2. More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: legislation.gov.uk
3. Information regarding how to safely carry out maintenance tasks can be found on the HSE website at hse.gov.uk/safemaintenance
4. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk

A self-employed gas fitter from Burnley has received a 15-month community order after carrying out gas work without being Gas Safe registered.

Preston Crown Court heard that Adam Kilbride carried out work at two properties in Burnley in December 2018 and January 2019, whilst falsely claiming to be Gas Safe registered.

Following notification of installation defects by the occupiers of the properties, Gas Safe inspectors visited one of the properties and found the work to be of a poor standard. It was classed as ‘At Risk’ and ‘Not to Current Standards’

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found Adam Kilbride was not a registered with Gas Safe Register and was also found to have falsely pretended to be Gas Safe Registered.

Adam Kilbride of Burnley pleaded guilty to breaches of Regulations 3(3), 26(1) and 3(7) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998. He was sentenced to a 15-month community order and 100 hours of unpaid work . He was also ordered to pay £400 compensation to the homeowner and ordered to pay costs of £6000.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Caroline Shorrock said: “Adam Kilbride undertook gas work which he knew he was not registered to do.  All gas work must be done by registered Gas Safe engineers to ensure the highest standards are met in order to prevent injury and loss of life. Installers will be prosecuted if they carry out gas work without the proper qualifications. We would advise all householders to check that anyone they allow to work on the gas supply is gas safe registered. This can be done at the Gas Safe Register website”.

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. hse.gov.uk
2. More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: legislation.gov.uk/
3. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk