Firms fined over tragic lorry death
05/07/2010
Two companies have been fined a total of £160,000 following the death of a man who was crushed by a rolling lorry, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has revealed.
Gary Brooks, from Cotgrave, Nottingham, an HGV driver for logistics company Exel Europe Ltd, was attempting to collect a loaded trailer from the Imperial Tobacco site in the city on September 7 2007.
The 42-year-old had tried to attach the trailer to his cab, but as he was doing so the lorry rolled forward, trapping him between the front of the vehicle and a building. The driver suffered head injuries and died.
Two businesses - Exel, based in Milton Keynes, and Imperial Tobacco Ltd, from Bristol - were fined a total of £160,000 at Nottingham Crown Court on Friday after admitting breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act.
The HSE said its investigation had revealed that drivers working for both firms did not routinely apply the trailer brakes to make sure the vehicles were safely parked.
Some drivers had not been properly trained or assessed, while no checks had been carried out to monitor the use of trailer brakes in the yard, an HSE spokesman said.
He added that both companies had identified the risk to workers but failed to implement appropriate control measures.
The HSE said their method of working ignored safety guidance, leaving drivers, other employees, visitors and contractors all at risk.
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