Redrow Homes Limited of Ewlowe, Flintshire and WPI Civil Engineering Limited of King Street Trading Estate, Middlewich, Cheshire both pleaded guilty to Section 3(1) and Section 33(1)(c) of The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. Redrow was fined £500,000 with £101,000 in costs, while WPI was fined £300,000 with £17,000 in costs.
Liverpool Crown Court heard how 67-year-old Henry Jones was walking across the site in Knotty Ash on 08 August 2013.
However, he was struck by a reversing dumper truck and crushed under the rear wheels of a vehicle. He was pronounced as dead at the scene. The incident was witnessed by Mr Jones' son who was also working at the site.
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A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found that Redrow had made no provision to maintain separation of vehicles and pedestrians in the plot where Mr Jones died. It was heard that the traffic management across the entire site site was poorly managed and was an underlying cause of the accident.
The investigation also found that sub-contractor WPI failed to provide a banksman (a person trained to direct vehicle movement), or have any employees on site trained as banksmen, and that the vehicle involved was not fit to be used on site.
HSE inspector Jacqueline Western said: "This tragic incident was wholly avoidable. Having safety measures to protect pedestrian workers is a basic and well recognised principle of good construction management.
"Mr Jones' death could easily have been prevented if both the principal contractor and the sub-contractor had implemented safe systems of work and ensured that health and safety documentation was communicated and followed.
"Tragically, on this occasion both Redrow Homes and WPI Civil Engineering failed to do this."
(LM/MH)
