Peter O’Hare, a Director and employee of Peter O’Hare Limited, has been sentenced and fined after an employee sustained serious injuries.
On 12 November 2022, a male employee was working alongside Peter O’Hare to retrieve a forklift truck that had become stuck in uneven ground at the company’s premises in County Down, Northern Ireland, when he suffered serious crush injuries after being struck by a reversing lorry driven by Peter O’Hare.
An investigation undertaken by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSE NI) found that Peter O’Hare failed to take reasonable care for the health and safety of other persons at work, and failed to ensure that others were in a place of safety when he reversed the lorry within the yard.
Simple but suitable and sufficient checks should have been undertaken throughout the duration of the task, and would have ensured that persons were in a place of safety.
The HSE NI prosecuted Peter O’Hare. He pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work (Northern Ireland) Order SI 1978/1039 at Craigavon Crown Court, and was fined £12,500.
An Inspector with HSE NI’s Major Investigation Team, Sophie Pearson said: “This incident could so easily have been avoided. In relation to workplace transport activities, suitable workplace transport controls must be implemented, with adequate instruction, information, and effective communication in place at all times. HSENI will not hesitate to take enforcement action to ensure workplace transport risks are appropriately managed.”
