An employee working on a barn conversion fell through a stairway and was injured, leading to an £80,000 fine for a Devon-based timber company.
On May 14, 2018, the Lamisell Limited employee, a driver and warehouse worker, age 49, was constructing a barn for rental purposes at the company’s location close to Okehampton.
He jumped onto a piece of insulation that concealed a stairwell, causing the worker to fall and break two vertebrae. When the event occurred, the job was not adequately planned, overseen, or carried out safely. The business was responsible for managing all aspects of the work, including worker oversight.
At Poole Magistrates’ Court on August 31, 2022, Lamisell Limited, of Okehampton, Devon, admitted to safety violations and was fined £80,000 and told to pay costs of £7,331. Additionally, the corporation was mandated to pay a victim surcharge of £170. “This worker’s injuries were serious,” HSE inspector Peter Buscombe stated following the hearing. This incident might have been prevented if some fundamental safety measures had been implemented. The dangers of working at height are well-known, and falls from elevation continue to be one of the most common causes of work-related fatalities and injuries in this country.
