FIRM FAILED TO IMPLEMENT AGREED CONTROLS
Risk assessment carried out but precautions not taken
A construction company has been fined £30,000 after a worker fell through a roof window opening, suffering multiple fractures in July 2016.
Luton Magistrates heard how the employee of Sunshine Lofts Limited was carrying out work on a new build extension when his foot slipped and he fell through a roof light gap to the concrete floor below.
Plan, DO, Check and Act
HSE investigators found that the company risk assessment identified suitable measures to prevent falls but the defendant failed to implement those measures at the time of the injured persons fall.
Sunshine Lofts Limited – of Holywell Hill, St. Albans, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and has been fined £30,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,008.35.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Samantha Wells said:
“Falls from height remain one of the most common causes of work-related fatalities in this country and the risks associated with working at height are well-known.
In this case, by putting in place measures to prevent falls through the skylight including boarding over the gaps, or providing a scaffold platform under the roof under construction, could have removed the danger of falling.”
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