The father’s injuries were so severe that his left foot and lower leg had to be amputated
BA Mobile Fleet Services was fined £30,000 after a worker suffered lifechanging injuries
A Midlands company has been fined after one of its workers was crushed under a one-tonne concrete block.
The father -of-two, 35, was working for Redditch-based BA Mobile Fleet Services Limited when the incident happened on December 14, 2023.
His leg injuries were so severe that his left foot and lower leg had to be amputated, while he sustained serious injuries to his right leg.
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At the time, the man was 33 and had been inside an HGV box trailer as it was loaded with one-tonne concrete blocks.
He had been inside the trailer with a colleague while a third worker loaded the blocks using a forklift truck.
The vehicle was being loaded in preparation for a Driver Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) brake test.
It was during this process that the forklift truck ‘nudged’ a stack of blocks inside the trailer, causing them to topple on to the man’s legs – resulting in his devastating and life-changing injuries.
The man was also dismissed from his job after the incident.
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An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that BA Mobile Fleet Services Limited had failed to take appropriate precautions to segregate workers from moving vehicles on site.
The investigation identified that the company had not provided training to the forklift driver and they had not authorised him to operate such vehicles.
HSE inspector Emma Page said: “The injuries sustained here by this young man have been truly life-changing.
“Too many people are injured or killed every year in workplace transport related incidents.
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“Companies should do all they can to ensure all workers go home safely to their families at the end of each day.
“We will take action against those who fail to do so.”
BA Mobile Fleet Services Limited of Unit 2 The Works, Tanworth Lane, Redditch, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act.
On Wednesday (April 15), the company was fined £30,000 and was ordered to pay £4,325 costs at a hearing at Kidderminster Magistrates Court.
You can find comprehensive guidance on workplace transport on the HSE website for further information.