Waste Company Fined After Unsafe Skip Stockpiling and Weak 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 areas accessed by workers and a traffic arrangement that did not effectively separate pedestrians from vehicles. The company was fined following prosecution after previous enforcement and improvement notices.

What Was The Incident?

HSE inspection found vehicles including tipper lorries and loading shovels moving around the site, while pedestrians were forced to use the same route as vehicles. The pedestrian entrance was chained and padlocked, and there were no effective designated pedestrian routes or crossing points. Although a visual traffic plan existed, it was not visible to staff or visitors and was out of date because the site layout had changed, so it did not address key pedestrian movements such as access across the yard to toilets. HSE also found skips unsafely stacked, with some deformed and therefore more unstable. In places the stacks were three high, increasing the likelihood of collapse or falling. The skips were located in an area regularly accessed by workers on foot or in vehicles, creating a significant risk of serious injury if a skip fell or the stack collapsed.

What Was The Outcome?

The employer pleaded guilty to two offences under section 33(1)(a) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 relating to failures of duties to protect persons on site from risk of death or serious personal injury. The court fined the company 167,000 and ordered it to pay 16,195 in costs. This followed HSE improvement notices and earlier enforcement activity, including prohibition notices in 2019 relating to stockpiling and risks of collapse.

Key Points To Consider

Separate pedestrians and vehicles in a usable way. Do not rely on informal movement patterns. Provide designated pedestrian routes and crossing points so pedestrians do not have to use vehicle routes, especially where large vehicles operate.

Keep traffic plans up to date and visible. A plan that is out of date or not visible to staff and visitors is not effective. Recheck controls whenever the site layout changes and make sure people can follow the current system.

Control reversing and on site vehicle movements. Where large vehicles must reverse, consider additional precautions to protect people nearby and put them in place. Traffic arrangements should reduce the risk to workers using site routes.

Prevent unstable stockpiling and falling hazards. Assess stacking stability and deformation risk. High or damaged stacks increase the likelihood of collapse or falling, so ensure skips are stored so that instability cannot endanger people.

Learn promptly from previous enforcement. If the business has previously been subject to enforcement about stockpiling and collapse risks, treat this as a clear warning and strengthen controls rather than repeating the same management failures.

HSE Prosecution Link