A catering equipment firm has been fined £20,000 after repairs it carried out at a Milton Keynes chip shop led to the owner receiving an electric shock. Magistrates heard that the man suffered burns and a cardiac arrest when he touched the live lead of a drainage pump in October 2007.
The directors of the catering equipment firm, KLS, based in King's Lynn, Norfolk, pleaded guilty to two counts of breaching health and safety legislation.
The chip shop owner had authorised repairs to the pump to be carried out under warranty by KLS, which had fitted the shop when it opened earlier in 2007. Investigations by council environmental health officers revealed the modifications were of a 'poor electrical standard' to the extent that a plug lead and socket was still live when removed from the wall.
The court was told the injured man was attached to the electrical supply for up to 30 seconds, whereupon a family member managed to prise the lead from his hands.
Robert Kitchingham, who carried out the work for KLS, pleaded guilty under the Heath and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and was fined. Milton Keynes council said the £20,000 fine against the company was the maximum available.
