Waste Company Fined After Skips Stockpiled and Pedestrians Put at Risk

Brief Summary

The HSE found multiple site safety failures at a waste and recycling operation, including a lack of segregation between pedestrians and vehicles and skips stacked three high in places. The company was fined after pleading guilty to offences for exposing people on site to risk of death or serious injury, following earlier enforcement action.

What Was The Incident?

HSE inspectors visited the site and observed vehicles being driven around the yard without effective controls to protect pedestrians. The pedestrian entrance was chained and padlocked, and people had to use the vehicle route used by lorries and other vehicles. There was no effective segregation using designated pedestrian routes or crossing points, and no meaningful separation of people from reversing and moving vehicles. Although a visual traffic plan existed, it was not visible to staff or visitors and was out of date because the site layout had changed, including pedestrian movements to access toilets. Inspectors also found skips stacked unsafely, with some deformed and with a three high stack in places. Skips were located in areas regularly accessed by workers on foot or in vehicles, increasing the risk of falling and collapse.

What Was The Outcome?

The employer pleaded guilty to two offences and was fined £167,000, with £16,195 costs ordered. HSE had previously served prohibition notices in 2019 relating to stockpiling and risks of collapse, and improvement notices were issued after the August 2022 findings requiring actions within set timescales.

Key Points To Consider

Separate pedestrians and vehicles properly. Ensure pedestrians have safe designated routes and crossing points and that there is clear segregation from vehicle movements, especially where vehicles move and reverse around the site.

Keep traffic management information current and accessible. A traffic plan is not enough on paper. Make sure it is visible to staff and visitors and updated to reflect current site layouts and actual pedestrian movement needs.

Control risks from reversing and moving vehicles. Where large vehicles must reverse, carry out a risk assessment and implement additional precautions to protect people working nearby, rather than relying on general arrangements.

Prevent unsafe stockpiling and instability of stored items. Stacking must account for size weight and stability. Avoid over stacking, do not store damaged or deformed skips in high stacks, and remove conditions that make collapse more likely.

Act quickly and learn from prior enforcement. If enforcement action has previously identified similar failures, treat improvement notice requirements and underlying duties as urgent and verify that changes are implemented effectively across the whole site.

HSE Prosecution Link