Employers whose breaches of health and safety law result in injury to workers are made to pay for their non-compliance – but, as with individuals, the penalties levied are tailored to the seriousness of the offence in each case and the employer's ability to pay. This was illustrated in a recent case in which a £1.8 million fine imposed by Basildon Crown Court in January 2016 on a port operator was reduced to £500,000 by the Court of Appeal (R v C.RO Ports London Limited).
C.RO Ports London Limited was prosecuted following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive into an accident in which a maritime terminal worker's arm was caught in a powered capstan. The injured worker was one of a three-man team securing an ocean-going vessel's heavy mooring ropes to land. His fingers became caught between the rotating drum of the capstan and the heaving line, causing his arm to be wrapped around the drum. A co-worker realised what was happening and operated an emergency stop device on the capstan, but this was too late to prevent the man suffering multiple fractures of the limb and nerve and ligament damage. He was still not able to bend and straighten his arm properly 18 months after the accident.
C.RO Ports pleaded guilty to a breach of Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and was fined £1.8 million and ordered to pay £14,328 in prosecution costs.
The company appealed against that decision, pointing to its otherwise good safety record and its early guilty plea. It had also introduced revised health and safety procedures, to take into account the risks associated with electric capstans, immediately after the accident. It was facing challenging trading conditions, its pre-tax annual profits having fallen from £13 million at the time of the accident to £2.7 million in its most recent accounts.
In the circumstances, the Court of Appeal found that the fine was manifestly excessive and allowed the appeal.
Dean Parnell, specialises in defending companies/businesses in relation to health and safety prosecutions and is able to answer any questions you may have on health and safety investigations and/or prosecutions.
Contact Dean Parnell on 0121 698 2200 or email D.Parnell@SydneyMitchell.co.uk
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