Serviceplan Contracts prosecuted after forklift truck fall

LEIGH-based Serviceplan Contracts has been prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive after a man fell while trying to climb onto the roof of a forklift truck.

The 29-year-old man from Tyldesley had been trying to climb on the roof of the forklift to carry out work to the lifting equipment. He struck his head on the ground and was knocked unconscious for several minutes in the incident at Moss Industrial Estate on St Helens Road in Leigh.

An HSE investigation found it was common practice for Serviceplan’s employees to service the lifting mast and chains on a forklift truck by climbing on top of it. It fined the company for failing to make sure the work was planned, supervised and carried out safely.

Speaking after the hearing, Emily Osborne, the investigating inspector at HSE, said: “He had been trained to carry out the work by standing on the roof of the forklift truck, despite there being a serious risk of him being injured in a fall. But Serviceplan simply hadn’t considered the potential dangers of working at height in this way.

“Workers face being seriously injured if they fall just a few feet. It’s therefore vital that companies plan work at height, supervise it appropriately and carry it out safely with the appropriate equipment.”

On average, 50 people are killed in Great Britain each year as a result of a fall from height and nearly 9,000 are seriously injured.