Working at Height prosecution for Leamington firm

Raicam Clutch Ltd has been prosecuted by the Health and Safety Exectuive after an employee fell from a roof breaking five vertebrae and suffering whiplash.

The employee had been asked to go on the flat roof to investigate a leak. However, safety was not a concern meaning there were no guard rails, and the man was not tethered to anything. He tripped over a loose cable on the roof and fell 3.5 metres where his injuries were sustained.

Raicam has received a £5,000 fine for pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. A further £4,952 must be paid to cover costs.

Mark Austin, HSE Inspector, commented:

"This was an entirely foreseeable incident which could have been avoided if Raicam Clutch Ltd had implemented safety precautions accepted within the industry as normal working practices.

Roofing work requires careful planning and assessment of the risks involved. In this case, an employee was working without any protection to prevent him falling which is completely unacceptable."

C&D understand the risks involved with working on a roof or at any height. That's why we regularly offer the training course Working at Height to ensure the precautions and regulations can be understood and adhered to.

If you would like to know more about this course, or any of those offered on our training page, please get in touch.

Source: HSE