Glasgow Prestwick Airport has been fined £144,050 after an experienced ground handling operative died when a corroded guardrail on a pallet loader failed.  On 11 January 2023, Joseph Dempsey, 59, was preparing to unload cargo from an aircraft using a pallet loader. As he repositioned a guardrail, it gave way, causing him to fall approximately 10 feet to the tarmac. Colleagues and paramedics attempted resuscitation, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

HSE has published a safety notice aimed at excavator operators, slingers and anyone working near them.  There is a risk that people can be struck by the excavator or a load if the excavator operator does not use the safety control lever or isolation device correctly.

Tata Steel (UK) Ltd has been fined £1.5 million and ordered to pay £26,318 in costs after a contractor was fatally injured at its Port Talbot steelworks in South Wales.   The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted the company for what it described as “basic” health and safety failings, including inadequate isolation and guarding of dangerous machinery.

A County Durham waste management company has been fined after a young employee was run over by an excavator.  Farm XS (Northern) Limited, based in Barnard Castle, was sentenced after an incident on 29 January 2024 that left the 24-year-old with serious injuries.

A Manchester-based construction company has been fined after workers were put at risk of exposure to asbestos.  A1 Property Maintenance Management Limited was acting as the principal contractor during work at the former Unicorn Public House on Liverpool Road, Eccles, Greater Manchester.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is ramping up efforts to tackle work-related ill health, overhaul RIDDOR reporting, review its Fee for Intervention (FFI) scheme, and smooth the BSR’s transition into a standalone body – all while keeping enforcement sharp and regulation smarter. We report back from the regulator's AGM, which took place last week.  

The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted roofing contractor Gary Smith for failing to provide edge protection for subcontractors.   The result was that a worker suffered serious injuries after falling from a flat roof.  It was the second time that Smith, trading as GJ Smith Roofing, had failed to provide edge protection on a job, with HSE previously taking enforcement action against him.

The company behind New Brighton’s Adventureland has been charged following an incident involving an inflatable pirate ship in 2023.  Wilkie Leisure Group Ltd, the firm behind the popular seaside attraction, is due to appear at Wirral Magistrates Court on October 2. A court date had been set for July 24 but the case was adjourned. The courts confirmed to the LDRS the company has been charged with two counts related to an incident that took place at the Adventureland on Marine Promenade, New Brighton on November 18 2023. The case is being brought by Wirral Borough Council.

A textile manufacturer has been fined £220,000 after one of its directors was killed by a reversing HGV in Rochdale.  Daniel Ames was a director of The British Millerain Company Limited and had offered to stay behind at the company warehouse to wait for the return of the vehicle on 22 June 2023.

A serious incident involving workplace transport at a West Midlands textile processing factory has underlined the critical importance of managing vehicle movements on site – and the devastating consequences when this is neglected.  In March 2023, a worker at JMP Wilcox & Company Limited was struck by a telescopic handler while operating a ride-on electric pallet truck inside the company’s Bilston facility. The 42-year-old man sustained severe leg injuries, resulting in life-changing consequences.