Waste Company Fined After Unsafe Skip Stockpiling and Poor Vehicle Pedestrian Separation

Brief Summary

The HSE found multiple health and safety failures at a waste and recycling site, including skips being stockpiled three high in places, poor pedestrian and vehicle segregation, and a traffic plan that was not visible or kept up to date. Enforcement action had previously been taken for similar risks, making the repeat failings a key factor.

What Was The Incident?

During an HSE visit, inspectors observed vehicles and loading shovels being driven around the site without effective separation from pedestrians. The pedestrian entrance was chained and padlocked, forcing people to use the vehicle route. No clear designated pedestrian routes or crossing points were in place. The employer had a visual traffic plan but it was not visible to staff or visitors and did not reflect the current site layout, including pedestrian access to toilets. The inspectors also found skips stacked unsafely, with some deformed skips and stacks up to three high in places. The stacking was located in an area regularly accessed by workers on foot or in vehicles, creating a serious risk of collapse or falling and of people being struck.

What Was The Outcome?

The employer pleaded guilty to two offences under section 33(1)(a). The company was fined £167,000 and ordered to pay £16,195 in costs. Improvement notices were served following the initial visit, and HSE later found the business had previously been the subject of prohibition notices in 2019 relating to skip stockpiling and collapse risks. This enforcement history formed part of the overall case against the employer.

Key Points To Consider

Ensure effective segregation of pedestrians and vehicles. Provide designated pedestrian routes and suitable crossing points so people do not have to use vehicle movements routes, particularly where larger vehicles reverse or manoeuvre around the site.

Keep site traffic arrangements accurate and accessible. A traffic plan is only useful if it is visible to those on site and updated when the site layout or routes change, including everyday pedestrian movements such as access to welfare facilities.

Control the risks from stacked waste skips. Do not allow skips to be stacked in ways that increase instability, including excessive stacking height and the presence of deformed skips, especially where people regularly pass nearby.

Plan for potentially catastrophic consequences. Where large heavy items are stored on site, assess and manage collapse and falling risks as they can lead to serious injury or death if people are within reach.

Act on previous enforcement findings and improvement requirements. If enforcement action has already identified similar duties and control failures, treat this as a clear warning to revise arrangements, verify controls on site, and ensure required improvements are completed within timescales.

HSE Prosecution Link