Construction Employee Killed Falling Through Fragile Asbestos Roofing.
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On the 22nd of May 2017, Marius Andrus was performing work on a replacement roof project in Liverpool. The roofer had reached a part of the roof made with old Asbestos cement sheets. They collapsed, and he fell through the roof, six metres down, sustaining fatal injuries.
The company responsible for the tragic workplace death is a Powys construction company called AJM Services Ltd. They have been fined £51,000 and ordered to pay costs of £5,000 after pleading guilty to section 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
The building owners were also prosecuted for breaching Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Act. Pearsons Glass of Liverpool were sentenced at an earlier hearing in February 2021. They were fined £80,000 and £6,656 in costs.
HSE concluded, after an investigation of the work accident, that the area in which Andrus fell through did not have safety netting. AJM also failed to take steps to mitigate the hazards faced by those working on the roof. The inspector referred to this incident as easily avoidable:
“This was a tragic incident, which resulted in a needless loss of life and could have easily been avoided by properly planning the work and ensuring appropriate safeguards were in place.”
After the hearing, Andy McGory went on to say:
“Those in control of work at height have a responsibility to devise safe methods of working, which should include providing clear and comprehensive information for their workers and ensuring that they are adequately supervised.”
Falling from Heights is the Leading Cause of Workplace Death
According to HSE’s own statistics, the most common cause of death in the workplace comes from working at heights. Construction, second only to Agriculture, is one of the most dangerous industries for workplace deaths.
Falls from heights can be lethal even at small heights, and with a myriad of ways such an accident can happen, employers need to plan work accordingly to prevent injury. Unstable ladders, fragile surfaces, unguarded edges, faulty equipment, work in poor weather – tragedy can be struck from any one of these preventable issues.
Even non-fatal fall from height injuries are abundant in the UK. There are around 6,500 of these of personal injury reported to RIDDOR.
Have you Suffered from Falling at Work?
If you have been injured by falling at work – even from a nasty slip, trip, or fall – and you’re not at fault, you are entitled to claim compensation. Contact our expert legal team to get a free assessment of your claim and to see how much no win, no fee* compensation you could be awarded. Call us on 08082391859^ today and get started.
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