Haulier fined for fatal HGV incident

THE Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is warning employers not to ignore basic safety precautions following the death of a lorry driver at a ready-mixed concrete depot in east London.

John Peter Wootten, formerly trading as AEP Aggregates, was recently fined £4,000, plus costs of £750, after pleading guilty to breaching Sections 3(1)(a) and 10(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.

The prosecution followed a HSE investigation into an incident in which a driver in Mr Wootten’s employment, Joseph Caruana, was fatally injured by a tipper trailer.

On 19 December 2001, Mr Caruana was unloading shingle at RMC Readymix Ltd’s depot in Tower Hamlets. Having reversed his articulated lorry up a concrete ramp into the unloading bay, he engaged the tractor handbrake and activated the trailer’s tipping mechanism.

However, Mr Caruana did not engage the trailer’s parking brake and also failed to release the tailgate of the trailer. As a result, the shingle load build up at the rear of the trailer and the weight caused the vehicle to skid down the ramp.

When Mr Caruana noticed this happening he jumped into the cab but did not have time to close the door. The vehicle then jack-knifed, throwing him from the cab and under the advancing wheels of the trailer. He died of multiple injuries at the scene.

Commenting on the case, HSE Inspector Charles Linfoot said: ‘Hauliers need to make sure they have safe systems of work, which include risk assessments, adequate training and supervision of all workers. These actions are simple and could have saved the life of Mr Caruana.

‘This prosecution shows that we are determined to tackle this issue head on and will continue to take enforcement action against companies and individuals who breach safety precautions.’