Waste Company Fined After Unsafe Skip Stacking and Poor Traffic Segregation

Brief Summary

HSE found multiple health and safety failures at a waste and recycling site, including skips stacked up to three high in regularly accessed areas and inadequate separation between pedestrians and vehicles. Despite earlier enforcement, the employer pleaded guilty and was fined with additional costs.

What Was The Incident?

On the day of the HSE visit in August 2022, inspectors observed tipper lorries and loading shovels moving around the site without effective segregation from pedestrians. The pedestrian entrance was chained and padlocked, so pedestrians had to use the same route as vehicles, with no designated pedestrian routes or crossing points. Although a traffic plan existed, it was not visible to staff or visitors and was out of date after the site layout changed, so it did not address key pedestrian movements such as access to toilets. Inspectors also found skips stacked unsafely, with some deformed and stacked three high in places. The stacking height and deformation increased instability and the risk of collapse or falling, particularly because skips were located in an area regularly accessed by workers on foot or in vehicles.

What Was The Outcome?

After improvement notices were served and a further investigation, the employer pleaded guilty to two offences relating to duties to ensure people on site are not put at risk of death or serious injury. The employer was fined £167,000 and ordered to pay £16,195 in costs.

Key Points To Consider

Keep vehicles and pedestrians properly separated. Ensure clear designated pedestrian routes and crossing points so people on foot are not forced to use vehicle movement areas, including at entrances and access points.

Make traffic plans usable and up to date. A traffic plan that is not visible and does not reflect the current site layout will not control risk, particularly where pedestrian routes such as access to welfare facilities have changed.

Control the risks from stacking large waste skips. Do not rely on informal arrangements for skip storage; check stability and stacking height and take account of deformation and location in areas regularly accessed by workers.

Act promptly when enforcement notices are issued. Improvement notices and follow up action should be treated as a clear priority to remedy breaches within the required timescales, with arrangements reviewed to prevent repeat risks.

Previous enforcement should trigger stronger risk controls. If an employer has already been warned by enforcement about stockpiling and collapse risks, it should reassess controls early and thoroughly rather than assuming prior action is sufficient.

HSE Prosecution Link