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

Brief Summary

The HSE found multiple serious failures at a waste and recycling site, including skips stacked three high in places and poor segregation between pedestrians and vehicles. The employer also did not keep its traffic plan up to date and failed to protect people from the risk of serious harm. Enforcement action had previously been taken for similar risks.

What Was The Incident?

During HSE visits in August 2022, inspectors observed vehicles moving freely around the yard, with no effective separation between pedestrians and traffic. The pedestrian entrance was chained and padlocked, forcing pedestrians to use routes intended for lorries and other vehicles. The employer relied on a visual traffic plan that was not visible to staff or visitors and was out of date because the site layout had changed. Inspectors also found skips stacked unsafely, including some deformed skips and a stack height of three high in places, increasing the likelihood of collapse or falling. Skips were located in an area regularly accessed by workers on foot or in vehicles, which placed people at risk.

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. The company was fined £167,000 and ordered to pay £16,195 in costs. HSE also issued improvement notices requiring corrective action within a specified timescale, following further concerns raised at the site.

Key Points To Consider

Do not allow unsafe stockpiling of heavy materials. If items such as skips can become unstable, stack height, condition and location must be controlled so that collapse and falling do not put people at risk.

Segregate pedestrians and vehicles with effective routes and crossings. Workplaces must be organised so people can move safely. Pedestrian access should not be routed through vehicle areas, and designated routes and crossing arrangements need to be effective in practice.

Keep traffic plans visible and current. A traffic management plan is not enough if staff and visitors cannot see it, or if it is out of date and does not reflect how people actually access the site, including welfare areas.

Address higher risk reversing and vehicle movement scenarios. Where large vehicles reverse or manoeuvre around people, employers must identify the additional precautions needed and implement them to reduce the risk to nearby workers and others.

Act on prior enforcement and treat improvement notices seriously. Previous enforcement about stockpiling and collapse risks means legal duties should already be understood and acted on, not repeated.

HSE Prosecution Link