Waste Employer Fined After Unsafe Skip Stockpiling and Poor Traffic Management

Brief Summary

HSE found multiple serious health and safety failures at a waste and recycling site, including skips stacked three high in places and pedestrians being routed through the same areas used by large vehicles. The employer had improvement and previous enforcement history, yet the risks were still not controlled. The case highlights how traffic management and segregation must be designed, kept current, and actively communicated.

What Was The Incident?

On an HSE visit in August 2022, inspectors observed vehicles moving around the yard, including tipper lorries and loading shovels. Pedestrian access was chained and padlocked, forcing people to use the vehicle entrance route used by lorries and other vehicles. There was no effective segregation using designated pedestrian routes or crossing points. Although the employer had a visual traffic plan, it was not visible to staff or visitors and was out of date because the site layout had changed, so it did not cover key pedestrian movements such as access to toilets. Inspectors also found skips unsafely stacked, with some deformed skips adding to instability. In places the stacks were three high, increasing the likelihood of collapse or a fall. Skips were stacked in an area regularly accessed by workers either on foot or in vehicles, creating a significant risk of falling material.

What Was The Outcome?

The employer pleaded guilty to two offences under s33(1)(a) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. It was fined £167,000 and ordered to pay £16,195 in costs. HSE served improvement notices requiring action within a specified timescale, and the investigation noted previous enforcement action in 2019, including prohibition notices relating to stockpiling and risks of collapse.

Key Points To Consider

Segregate pedestrians and vehicles effectively. Make sure pedestrians can move around the site using designated routes and crossings, rather than being forced to share vehicle routes, especially where lorries and other vehicles operate.

Keep site traffic plans visible and current. A traffic plan is only useful if staff and visitors can see it and it reflects the current site layout, including how people actually access key areas such as welfare facilities.

Control skip and stored waste stability. Do not allow skips to be stacked in a way that increases instability and collapse risk, and consider the effect of deformed skips and stacking height on the likelihood of falling material.

Avoid placing hazards where people routinely work or pass. Keep potentially unstable loads and stockpiles out of areas regularly accessed by workers on foot or by vehicles to reduce the consequences if a fall or collapse occurs.

Use enforcement history as a prompt to improve systems. Where improvement notices or earlier prohibitions have already highlighted legal duties and risks, ensure corrective actions are implemented and verified rather than repeating the same unsafe arrangements.

HSE Prosecution Link