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Developer prosecuted after electrician falls from insecure cage

Wynbrook Ltd, of Stapleford, Nottingham have been fined £10k and ordered to pay over £3k in prosecution costs after an electrician fell from a man carrying cage placed on the forks of a telehandler. The driver had not been trained in the use of the cage and failed to secure the cage to the forks.

The cage became unstable and fell causing the electrician injuries which left him unable to work for more than eight months. Those using the cage did wear a harness to secure themselves to it and the driver was unaware that the telehandler was provided with a safety pin to prevent the forks from being dropped accidentally.

HSE Inspector Martin Giles said: “this incident could have been avoided if the company had managed this risk by ensuring the telehandler driver had the appropriate training required to carry out the lifting operation safely.”

Comment: HSE has published clear guidance on the safe use of ‘Telehanders used with non-integrated platforms“

This article was posted on 25th February 2009 in ALL LATEST NEWS, PROSECUTIONS, telehandler.
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