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

Brief Summary

An HSE investigation at a waste and recycling site identified multiple health and safety failures, including skips stacked three high and poorly managed pedestrian and vehicle routes. The company also had a traffic plan that was not accessible to staff or visitors and had not been updated after site changes. Enforcement action had previously been taken for similar skip stockpiling and collapse risks.

What Was The Incident?

During an HSE visit, inspectors observed vehicles such as tipper lorries and loading shovels operating around the yard. Pedestrian access was constrained because the pedestrian entrance was chained and padlocked, forcing pedestrians to use routes intended for lorries and other vehicles. There was no effective segregation through designated pedestrian routes or crossing points. The company had a visual traffic plan, but it was not visible to staff or visitors and was out of date because the site layout had changed, so it did not reflect key pedestrian movements such as access across the yard to toilets. Inspectors also found skips unsafely stacked, with some deformed, and in places the stack was three high. The stacking increased the likelihood of collapse or falling, and skips were placed in areas regularly accessed by workers on foot or in vehicles, creating a serious risk to people near the skips.

What Was The Outcome?

The company pleaded guilty to two offences. It was fined £167,000 and ordered to pay £16,195 in costs. HSE enforcement action had previously included prohibition notices served in 2019 relating to stockpiling and risks of collapse, and further improvement notices were served requiring corrective action within a specified timescale.

Key Points To Consider

Control vehicle and pedestrian segregation. Ensure people walking around the site are separated from vehicles using clear designated pedestrian routes and crossing points, and do not rely on pedestrians sharing vehicle routes.

Keep traffic management plans current and usable. A traffic plan must be visible and accessible to staff and visitors and updated when the site layout changes so it reflects actual pedestrian and vehicle movements.

Manage skip storage to prevent collapse and falling. Treat skip stockpiling as a structural stability risk, particularly where skips are heavy or large, and ensure storage arrangements reduce the likelihood of collapse and falling.

Avoid placing hazards in areas people routinely access. Do not store skips in locations that workers regularly pass through on foot or in vehicles, since falling skips create serious consequences.

Use prior enforcement learning to drive compliance. If enforcement action has already identified similar hazards, review and improve control measures promptly, then verify they work in practice and across the full site layout.

HSE Prosecution Link