Clearaway Recycling Limited, based at Archers Fields, was sentenced after a 22-year-old site operative was crushed by the moving vehicle while accessing the tipping yard on 28 October 2024. She suffered life-threatening injuries when she was trapped between a gate post and the shredder itself. She has been left with life-changing injuries as a result of the incident.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the company had not managed the movement of pedestrians and vehicles at the site. This allowed it to become custom and practice for pedestrians to walk in areas close to moving vehicles, including the shredder, as well as close to lorries and forklift trucks.

The waste and recycling industry saw six workers killed during 2025/26 – which when compared over a five-year period, means fatalities are ten times as likely compared to the all-industry average.

Clearaway Recycling Limited of Archers Fields, Basildon, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. The company was fined £400,000 and ordered to pay costs of £10,259 at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on 13 August 2026.

HSE inspector Joanne Williams said: “The waste and recycling sector continues to be one of the leading industries for workplace injuries and fatalities.

“One of the reasons is the risks from vehicle and pedestrian collisions are well known, yet serious incidents continue to occur.

“In this case, a young woman was left with significant and life-changing injuries.

“Where pedestrians require access to working areas, safeguards must be in place to protect them, including providing adequate segregation or separation distances between pedestrians and vehicles in the area.”

The case was taken by HSE enforcement lawyer Andrew Siddall, supported by paralegal officer Thomas Smith.