Have a question?
033 3772 0409

Legal News

Manchester firm fined £125,000 after employee is crushed to death in industrial accident (28 October 2014)

Date: 28/10/2014
Duncan Lewis, Legal News Solicitors, Manchester firm fined £125,000 after employee is crushed to death in industrial accident

A Manchester-based firm has been fined £125,000 after an employee was killed when a steel container hit him.

Manchester Evening News reports that Michael Wickstead, 63, from Radcliffe in Bury was working for Refinery Supplies Ltd at the Greengate Industrial Estate, Chadderton in Greater Manchester.

Mr Wickstead died after being crushed by a 3-tonne steel container. The container was knocked into him as a result of two cranes colliding on site.

The incident on 11 July 2011 was investigated by the Health and Safety Executive, which found that cranes at the Greengate site of Refinery Supplies Ltd had previously collided.

At the time of his death, Mr Wickstead was involved in the manufacture of a steel container used for molten lead or zinc. The container had been hanging from chains attached to a crane which was holding it steady on a stand.

At the same time, another container was being moved by a crane using the same overheard track. When the two cranes collided, the container Mr Wickstead was working on was knocked off its stand.

The HSE investigation revealed that the firm should have had clear safety procedures in place to prevent cranes colliding on site.

HSE investigators said that the incident could have been prevented had the cranes been fitted with anti-collision equipment – or a safety procedure was put in place to prevent the cranes coming into contact with each other.

At Manchester Crown Court, Refinery Supplies Ltd of Greenside Way pleaded guilty to one breach of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

The company was fined £90,000 with £35,000 costs.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector Helen Jones said:

“Michael sadly lost his life because the safety standards of his employer fell well below the minimum legal standards.

“Refinery Supplies knew there was a risk of cranes colliding at the factory –and, in fact, this had happened on several previous occasions without the same catastrophic result.

“However, the firm failed to take any action to make sure workers weren’t put at risk of being injured.

“It’s vital that manufacturers carefully consider the dangers facing their employees and then implement safety improvements.

“If Refinery Supplies had done this, then Michael’s tragic death could have been avoided.”

Duncan Lewis Personal Industry Solicitors – Industrial Accidents and Fatal Injury Claims

Duncan Lewis is a leading firm of personal injury solicitors and can advise those who have suffered an industrial accident as a result of employer negligence on how to make no win claims for compensation – including claims relating to:

• Amputation
• Back injuries
• Concussion
• Crush injuries
• Fractures
• Head injuries
• Spinal injuries
• Sprains
• Whiplash injuries.

Duncan Lewis personal injury solicitors can also advise the families of workers who have lost their lives in an industrial accident as a result of negligence on how to make no win no fee Fatal Injury Claims for compensation.

For expert legal advice on no win no fee Industrial Accident Claims and Fatal Injury Claims, call Duncan Lewis personal injury solicitors on 020 7923 4020.

Call us now on 033 3772 0409 or click here to send online enquiry.
Duncan Lewis is the trading name of Duncan Lewis (Solicitors) Limited. Registered Office is Spencer House, 29 Grove Hill Road, Harrow, HA1 3BN. Company Reg. No. 3718422. VAT Reg. No. 718729013. A list of the company's Directors is displayed at the registered offices address. Authorised and Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority . Offices all across London and in major cities in the UK. ©Duncan Lewis >>Legal Disclaimer, Copyright & Privacy Policy. Duncan Lewis do not accept service by email.