Forklift crush death results in fine for haulier

Chris Tindall
June 13, 2023



A Lancashire haulage company has been prosecuted and fined £30,000 after a mechanic died while repairing a forklift truck.

E Jackson (Chatburn) in Clitheroe pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act when it appeared at Crewe Magistrates’ Court on 11 April.

Joseph Robinson, 39, was working with a new employee as they attempted to fix a steering fault on a forklift truck during the incident in October 2020. He requested that the employee move the vehicle forwards, but instead the forklift reversed and trapped the mechanic against a trailer.

Robinson was taken to hospital with severe head injuries and placed in an induced coma; however, he died the following day. His body was taken for organ donation, with a total of eight individuals receiving his donated organs.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the forklift truck was over 30 years old and had not been maintained or subjected to examination for some years. No principles of working with vehicles at the site had been put in place, such as designating a safe repair area or separating pedestrians
and vehicles.

HSE inspector Shellie Bee said: “This incident could so easily have been avoided. The employer had not maintained the forklift truck in a suitable working condition and had allowed an untrained employee to operate it.

“This, together with an inappropriate system to fix a fault on the machine, meant that the truck and Joseph Robinson were in close proximity when it moved in a direction he had not anticipated. As a result Joseph tragically lost his life.”

About the Author

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Chris Tindall

Chris Tindall started writing for the haulage and logistics industry in 2002 and has covered a broad range of significant issues, including GPS jamming by criminals, platooning and Brexit.

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