Turner Construction (Midlands) Ltd of Stafford has been fined a total of £14,000 for two health & safety offences and ordered to pay costs of £1,607 after a worker was injured when he reversed a 10tonne dumper truck into an open excavation.

The driver sustained crush injuries to his wrist. 

The fine was imposed by Peterborough Magistrates’ Court after it heard that Turner Construction had failed to put in place measures such as stop blocks to prevent vehicles from falling into the excavation, failed to plan and implement a safe system of work, and inadequately trained the dumper truck driver.

The company admitted a breach of the Construction (Design & Management) Regulations 2007, and Regulation 13(2) and Regulation 9 (1) of the Provision & Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.

The Health & Safety Executive (HSE), prosecuting, said the incident could have easily been avoided by putting simple safety measures in place.

After the hearing, Samantha Wells, the HSE Inspector who investigated and prosecuted this case, said: “Accidents can be prevented by ensuring construction work is planned, managed and monitored in a way that ensures it is carried out safely from the start – including, for example, the use of stop blocks at the edge of excavations.”