NEWS
FIRM FINED MORE THAN £500,000 AFTER SHIFT WORKER FELL TO HIS DEATH
A North Yorkshire company has been fined more than half a million pounds after a night shift worker fell to his death.
Mark Pinder, 51, was working for East Riding Sacks Ltd, a manufacturer of paper sacks, at its site in Stamford Bridge, near York, when the incident happened on 11 February 2023.
Mr Pinder, from York, had been operating one of the production lines when a blockage occurred on the upper deck of the machinery. After identifying the cause, he attempted to remove the blockage. He had been standing on the stationery metal rollers when his colleagues witnessed part of the machine being activated. Mr Pinder was struck by the machine which caused him to lose his footing.
He fell approximately three metres from the unguarded edge of the metal rollers to the factory floor below. Although paramedics were called to the factory, he died at the scene as a result of his injuries.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that East Riding Sacks Ltd failed to provide a robust safe system of work. This related to the isolation of the sack making line and the removal of blockages. They
DEATH OF MAN WHOSE LIFE WAS ‘UNJUSTLY CUT SHORT’ SEES
also failed to identify the risk from a fall from height and implement appropriate measures.
Falls from height remains one of the leading causes of workplace injury and death and HSE has detailed guidance on working safely at height.
https://www.hse.gov.uk/work-at-height/index.htm?utm_source=press.hse.gov. uk&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=prosecution_push
The HSE investigation also found that workers routinely cleared blockages themselves, relying solely on the interlock guarding to stop the machine, even though they had not been adequately trained in isolation or blockage removal procedures. In addition, workers were using the conveyor belt as a shortcut between gantries, often climbing over the handrails onto the equipment rather than down the stairs and walking around. Management were unaware of this practice.
HSE guidance states employers must take effective measures to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery and to avoid work at height where possible. Where routine access is required to components, suitable measures should be taken to stop the movement of dangerous parts before a person can reach a danger zone. Further guidance can be found here:
https://www.hse.gov. uk/work-equipment-machinery/
puwer-overview.htm
East Riding Sacks Ltd, of Full Sutton Industrial Estate, Stamford Bridge, Full Sutton, York, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. The company was fined £533,000 and ordered to pay £6,066 in costs at Hull Magistrates Court on 30 April 2025.
COMPANY BROUGHT TO JUSTICE A construction company has been fined after a kitchen fitter was crushed to death by a pack of concrete blocks at a site in the Cotswolds.
Martin Dunford, who was 33, was ‘very much loved’ by his family who say they miss him ‘every day’ since the incident on 23 January 2020. Martin, from Pocklington in Yorkshire, was killed after being pinned against the side of
a lorry loader as two stacks of concrete blocks fell onto him.
Martin had been working at Ebrington Rise, near Chipping Campden – a development of 16 three, four and five bedroomed houses being built by Piper Homes Construction Limited.
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An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Martin had walked around a lorry loader to talk to a driver about how long he would be on site, as he needed access to one of the properties being built. A stack of concrete blocks which had been placed on top of another stack of blocks, which was also supported by a wooden pallet, toppled over onto him, pinning him against the side of the lorry. He sustained severe internal and head injuries and died on site.
Piper Homes Construction Limited, who were the principal contractor on the site, had failed to ensure that a suitable, level storage area was provided for the safe offloading of construction materials. The company had also failed to ensure that wooden pallets in a suitable condition were used for the storage of construction materials and that persons were excluded from delivery areas. HSE guidance on pallet safety (PDF) is available.
Piper Homes Construction Limited, which is currently in liquidation, of Lace Market Square, Nottingham, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 13(1) of the Construction (Design & Management) Regulations 2015. The company was fined £300,000 and ordered to pay £5,236 in costs at Cheltenham Magistrates Court on 29 April 2025.
WWW.TOMORROWSHS.COM
https://www.hse.gov.uk/work-equipment-machinery/puwer-overview.htm
https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/pm15.pdf
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