Waste Company Fined After Unsafely Stockpiling Skips and Poor Traffic Management

Brief Summary

HSE found multiple health and safety failures at a waste and recycling site, including pedestrian routes being forced to share vehicle access, an out of date and unseen traffic plan, and skips stacked three high with deformed units in areas regularly accessed by workers. The risks included potentially catastrophic collapse or falling, and the employer had previously faced enforcement action for similar concerns.

What Was The Incident?

During an HSE visit, inspectors observed vehicles and loading equipment moving around the yard without effective separation from pedestrians. The pedestrian entrance was chained and padlocked, so pedestrians had to use the same route as lorries and other vehicles. Although a traffic plan existed, it was not visible to staff or visitors and no longer reflected the site layout, including pedestrian movements such as access to toilet facilities. Inspectors also found skips stacked unsafely, with some deformed, three high in places, and placed in an area regularly accessed by workers on foot or in vehicles, increasing the likelihood of collapse or items falling.

What Was The Outcome?

The employer pleaded guilty to two offences under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 relating to placing people on site at risk of death or serious personal injury. It was fined £167,000 and ordered to pay £16,195 in costs. Improvement notices had been served following the concerns, requiring action within a set timescale, and HSE also identified a history of enforcement, including prohibition notices served in 2019 for issues involving stockpiling and risks of collapse.

Key Points To Consider

Use clear vehicle and pedestrian segregation. Where vehicles operate around the workplace, ensure pedestrians have safe designated routes and crossing arrangements rather than being forced to use vehicle access routes.

Keep traffic plans current and usable. A traffic plan must reflect the actual site configuration and key pedestrian movements and must be communicated so staff and visitors can follow it.

Control skip storage to prevent collapse and falling. Do not stack skips in a way that increases instability, including avoiding deformed skips and excessive stack heights, and remove or re configure storage where workers access the area.

Act on known enforcement and repeat risks. Prior enforcement should trigger a review and improvements that address the same underlying risks, not just short term compliance.

Protect people from high consequence scenarios. Treat large heavy items that can fail, such as vehicle transported waste containers, as high consequence hazards and implement controls that reduce both likelihood and exposure to affected areas.

HSE Prosecution Link