Magistrates fine vehicle firm after apprentice suffers fractured skull
A Birmingham-based motor vehicle company has been fined after an apprentice suffered a fractured skull in an incident.
Birmingham Magistrates’ Court fined Central England Municipals, which trades at M6 Commercials, £20,000 plus costs after the company pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety laws.
Health and Safety Executive inspector Christopher Maher said: “If a suitable safe system of work has been in place prior to the incident, the life changing injuries sustained by the employee could have been prevented.”
The apprentice was undertaking maintenance work on a commercial vehicle alongside an experienced mechanic at the Nechells site.
They were replacing air suspension bags beneath a 39,000kg trailer when the bag, which was still under pressure, ejected sideways striking the injured person.
The employee suffered a fractured skull and was placed in an induced coma.
The Health and Safety Executive launched an investigation into the incident, which occurred last June, and found there was a failure to assess risk, a failure to implement a safe system of work and a failure to ensure that employees were appropriately trained and monitored to ensure the task could be carried out safely.
