LAWNMOWER DANGERS
A council in Nottinghamshire has been fined £50,000 following a serious incident in which a ride-on mower overturned at a churchyard, seriously injuring the operator, Keith Hatch reports.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigated the incident at St Peter and St Paul’s Church in North Wheatley, Nottinghamshire, where an employee of Bassetlaw District Council had been carrying out routine maintenance in the closed graveyard.
The employee lost control of the ride-on mower as it slid down a steep bank towards a retaining wall. Both the machine and the operative rolled over the wall, falling over two metres to the pavement and road below. The employee sustained injuries, including cracked ribs.
The HSE investigation identified a series of significant failings, which included Bassetlaw District Council not carrying out a suitable risk assessment and not providing adequate information, instruction or training to employees regarding the use of ride-on mowers on banks and slopes.
Guidance for landscape operatives published by the British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI) clearly sets out the measures employers should take to assess and control risks when working on or near slopes and banks.
The judge at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court found that Bassetlaw District Council had failed to meet these industry standards and was therefore highly culpable, having fallen far short of what was expected.
This resulted in the council being fined £50,000, ordered to pay £5,138.85 in costs and a victim surcharge of £2,000.
HSE Inspector Muir Finlay said, “This was a serious incident which could have been much worse.
“The fine imposed on the district council should underline to all employers that work on banks and slopes should only be undertaken when a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks has been carried out and appropriate controls or training provided.”
This isn’t the only case of an accident involving ride-on mowers that the HSE has recently dealt with.
In October 2021, 23-year-old Kamil Grygieniec was cutting grass around a village pond in North Stainley, North Yorkshire when the ride-on mower he was operating descended a steep incline and ended up in it.
The mower was being used without a safety-critical roll-over protection system fitted, and the HSE investigation found that the employer, in this case MHS Countryside Management Limited, had failed to carry out a suitable and sufficient site- specific risk assessment for the work being undertaken.
After the hearing, HSE Inspector Darian Dundas said, “This is a profoundly tragic case which is made all the more harrowing because the safety feature designed to prevent incidents like this had been removed from the lawnmower – leading to the fatal turn of events which has robbed a family of their loved one.”
‘‘ 11 uniteLANDWORKER Summer 2026
The fine imposed… should underline to all employers, that work on banks and slopes should only be undertaken when a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks has been carried out and appropriate controls or training provided
Muir Finlay, HSE Inspector
‘‘
Alamy
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
