Posted by Oliver Churchill
Electricians and electrical companies may want to take extra care when working at height, following a work accident that resulted in three Dundee companies being fined.Christopher Carson, who was working as an electrician's labourer for Robert AS Crockett and Partners Ltd, fell six and a half metres through a roof light onto a concrete floor, after employers failed to follow risk assessment procedures.
Crockett and Partners had been contracted by Electroguard Security Systems to fit a lighting system on a large project at Dundee Cold Stores when the accident occurred.
Mr Carson sustained a number of fractures to his back and shoulder, a puncture wound to his lower back and dislocated left shoulder.
Following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) it was found that Dundee Cold Stores Ltd had not asked Electroguard Security Systems or Robert AS Crockett and Partners Ltd for a written risk assessment or a method statement from either company.
All three firms pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety laws and were fined a combined total of £336,000.
Fall from height is the most common cause of worker fatality in the UK, which caused 13 deaths in 2010/2011 alone.
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