Employee falls seven metres to his death

A company has been fined £80,000 and ordered to pay costs of £10,000 after a refurbishment worker fell seven metres to his death from a tower scaffold in a warehouse in Northampton.

Spanclad, from the West Midlands, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 while Westminster Building, Spanclad's principal contractors, incurred a financial penalty of £50,000 for contravening Section 3(1) of the same act.

The employee was working on the tower scaffold, which was set up on insecure ground and was missing the top rail, when it moved due to its unsure setting, causing him to fall seven metres and suffer fatal injuries.

Health and Safety Executive inspector Richard Lockwood said the two firms should have assessed the risk its worker faced.

"This tragedy could have easily been avoided if the two companies had properly planned the work to ensure adequate safety measures were in place," he said.

Last year, more than 45 workers died as a result of falling from height while at work.