Worker's injured by a conveyor belt

A recycling firm has been intensely investigated after a worker was injured doing his daily job.

The employers’ liability insurance of Smurfit Kappa UK Ltd looks unhealthy as it faces prosecution by the health and safety executive (HSE) for the injury of one of its workers.

The 60 year old employee was pushing waste cardboard onto a metal conveyor belt at Smurfit Kappa UK Ltd warehouse in Preston when a reversing van had pushed him onto it, from which he had suffered broken ribs.

The company should have made sure pedestrians were kept away from moving vehicles by providing barriers or marked areas.

At Preston Magistrates Court, Smurfit Kappa UK Ltd was charged with breaching Regulation 17 of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 by failing to allow pedestrians and vehicles to work or move safely. It was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay £4,204 in costs.

Imran Siddiqui, the investigating inspector at HSE, said:

“The company failed to control the movement of vehicles in the warehouse, despite waste materials regularly being delivered to the site. There should also have been a segregated area for pedestrians so there was no chance of anyone being injured by reversing vans.”

There are an average of 61 deaths and more than 6,000 serious injuries each year caused by vehicles in workplaces. Constructaquote.com advises that firms purchase employers liability insurance to fully protect themselves from any unforeseen incidents.