R&R Ice Cream Ltd, an ice cream manufacturer in Leeming Bar, Yorkshire, has been successfully prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after one of its workers broke his arm.
Sam Goodall was working on the ice cream production line when his glove got caught and his arm was subsequently drawn into an in-feed conveyor belt. As a result, Mr Goodall broke his arm in two places and dislocated his wrist, requiring him to take six weeks of his own R&R.
The company was fined after Northallerton Magistrates' Court heart that they removed part of the line, leaving a gap in the side of the conveyor. As Mr Goodall put his hand into the gap to retrieve some trapped lids, his glove became entangled and his arm was drawn into a moving part of the machine.
R&R was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £3,294 after admitting a breach of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations SI 1998/2306. They also contravened the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations SI 1999/3242.
HSE inspector Kate Dixon said, "I am pleased that Mr Goodall has made a full recovery, but many other employees sustain permanent disability or impairment because machine safety has been neglected. Unguarded or poorly guarded machinery is the cause of many injuries in workplaces across the country. Employees should not be exposed to risks to their safety through their everyday work."
