by David Carter
23 September 2010
A man is free to pursue a work accident claim after his employers were found guilty of breaching two pieces of health and safety legislation.
Fabric company E-Leather Ltd appeared before Peterborough Magistrate’s Court yesterday and were fined £13,500 as well as being ordered to pay £5,000 in costs.
The case was brought before judges after employee Robert Dunn, hired through an agency, was badly injured in November 2009 at the company premises on Sturrock Way in Peterborough. Mr Dunn, 32, was operating a fabric winding machine when his left arm was suddenly pulled into the machinery after becoming drawn into the roll of material.
It was crushed so badly that all three arm bones were broken, and he required metal plates to be surgically implanted to hold them in place. He also wrenched his knee in the accident, and suffered torn cartilage.
The incident was blamed on poor safety procedures in the factory. Physical guards on the machinery were inadequate and no risk assessment had taken place.
The Health and Safety Executive’s Alison Ashworth said:
“Robert Dunn suffered a terrible injury because of an incident that was entirely avoidable. Proper safety guards play an important role in protecting workers from dangerous moving parts and the company had a responsibility to ensure suitable guarding was in place. Had a suitable and sufficient risk assessment been carried out then this issue would have been highlighted straight away.”