Sussex council issues forklift safety plea following timber company fine

The council said a lorry driver delivering timber at Covers’ Chichester site suffered life-changing injuries in March last year when a forklift truck crushed his hand against a metal post.

When the driver arrived, the timber on his vehicle was unloaded using a forklift truck operated by a Covers employee. The timber was on top of a series of steel metal posts acting as bearers.

After the timber had been unloaded by a forklift truck, the lorry driver got out of his cab and started to stow away under the lorry, the bearers on which the timber had been placed. While he was doing this, the forklift truck returned and its driver passed over paperwork. The lorry driver then returned to stowing the bearers.

As the forklift truck pulled away, its rear swung out and crushed the lorry driver’s hand against a part-stowed bearer.

He was rushed to hospital for emergency treatment but subsequently had parts of three fingers amputated.

The accident was investigated by Chichester District Council's environmental health officers who found there had been a breach of the Health and Safety at Work Act.

During a hearing on March 29, Brighton Magistrates’ Court heard that Covers did not ensure the safety of pedestrians on site. Other visiting drivers reported having experienced similar incidents of forklift drivers driving up to hand them paperwork while they were pedestrians on the site.

Covers pleaded guilty to a breach of Section 3 of The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and was fined £120,000 and ordered to pay costs of more than £6,000 plus a victim surcharge.

In 2013, the Health and Safety Executive issued an updated code of practice regarding rider-operated lift trucks. The code warns of the hazards of forklift truck movements. It states that they should not be operated near pedestrians.

The court judge said it had been a tragic accident but acknowledged Covers’ previous good health and safety record and that the company had done everything it could after the accident to improve safety. “The company should be lauded for its response,” he said.

“However, this was a preventable accident and could have been avoided if fork lift truck movements near pedestrians had been restricted,” said Louise Rudziak, head of housing and environment services at Chichester District Council.