Ultimate Trade Ltd, a scrap metal firm, and its director, Nasir Rashid, have been sentenced after a worker suffered severe injuries to his left arm after it became stuck in a forklift truck driven by Mr Rashid.
The worker had been told to stand on the forks of the truck to help move scrap cars into the back of a shipping container. He was trapped for over two hours while emergency services worked to free his arm. The worker sustained nerve damage to his left arm, making it difficult for him to grip or lift items and was hospitalised for nearly two months. Due to the injuries sustained he has been unable to return to work and requires ongoing medical treatment.
It is reported that the company failed to report to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for nearly three months, despite being told numerous times that this was a legal requirement.
HSE Inspector Sarah Taylor commented ''This incident could easily have been avoided. Ultimate Traders and Nasir Rashid had a legal responsibility to make sure the worker stayed safe, but instead he was instructed to climb onto the forks of a forklift truck to move scrap cars into a container. He suffered severe injuries as a result which will affect him for the rest of his life. Workers should never be allowed to stand directly on the forks on a forklift truck because of the risk of them falling or being injured by moving parts on the mast. This case should act as a warning to firms that they will find themselves in court if they do not take the safety of workers seriously.''
Nasir Rashid was sentenced to six months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to pay costs of £750 following a guilty plea to breaching the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
The company, Ultimate Traders Ltd, pleaded guilty to breaches of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations SI 2013/1471. They were given a nominal fine of £2 after a review of the company's finances.
