Two divisions of the Kent-based Cablesheer Group were working on a project Gerrards Cross in February 2013 when two employees fell through a fragile garage roof they were removing. One got away with only minor cuts and bruising, but the other sustained a traumatic brain injury, which required a number of reconstructive surgeries.
Swanley-based Cablesheer (Asbestos) Ltd and Cablesheer Construction Limited were prosecuted after an investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) identified clear safety failings with the roof work.
Aylesbury Magistrates Court heard the companies failed to ensure workers knew the dangers of working around fragile buildings. Had workers been trained to understand the dangers of fragile roofs then a new method of work could have been planned. The work was not planned with a reasonable amount of forethought as it was deemed low risk.
Each company was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay a further £756.50 in costs at High Wycombe Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 6(3) of the Work at Height regulations 2005.
After the hearing, HSE inspector Sarah Hill said: “The risks from working on fragile roofs are well-documented and the hierarchy of controls well-established. On this occasion the risks were not properly managed or controlled by either of the respective Cablesheer companies and the fall through the fragile roof was therefore totally preventable.
“There were clear failings with training and a lack of safety measures and equipment, and a worker was seriously injured as a result. Thankfully his colleague escaped relatively unharmed, but he too was put in unnecessary danger. A striking feature of this case is the fact the work could have been planned and managed without the need to physically access the roof in the first place.”
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