Contractor fined following dumper truck incident

Barrow Magistrates’ Court heard that, on 5 June 2019, S M Dixon Building Contractors Ltd had been working on the renovation of a detached property when the dumper truck, removing rubble over uneven ground, overturned resulting in multiple fractures to vertebrae in the worker’s back

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the employee had not received adequate training on how to operate the forward tipping dumper truck, including not being clearly instructed to always wear the seat belt when operating the machine. This led to the dumper overturning and the employee being ejected from the dumper and crushed.

S M Dixon Building Contractors Limited, 25 Main Street, Staveley, Kendal pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £4,087.24.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Michael Griffiths commented, “The injuries sustained by the worker were life changing and he could easily have been killed.

“This incident could have been avoided if measures were in place to ensure the dumper truck was operated safely through the provision of appropriate training and supervision.”