Equipment supplier fined after worker’s hand severed

A worker from County Durham had his hand severed while carrying out maintenance on glass cutting machinery a court heard. The 34-year-old maintenance technician was investigating a fault on a new tilt table with a colleague. He  was on his hands and knees while trying to ascertain the cause of the fault and had activated […]

Builder fined £15,000 after carbon monoxide death

A builder has pleaded guilty to a contravention of Sections 3 and 33 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 at Haddington Sheriff Court, and was fined £15,000. The builder had been contracted to rebuild the chimney on a property in Gifford but failed to ensure that it was fully cleared of […]

Healthcare provider fined after worker injury

A private healthcare provider managing a hospital in Ipswich has been fined for safety failings after an employee suffered a fractured kneecap. Mrs Shelagh Allen was working in the clinic room of a ward, which was being wet-mopped by a housekeeper during the ward’s busiest period. Mrs Allen went into the room after completing a […]

Compensation for workplace accidents

InjuriesBoard.ie has published a review of workplace accidents in Ireland in 2011 that shows compensation totalling €22.5million (2010: €25.1million) was awarded in respect of 830 (2010: 889 awards) personal injury workplace claims. Accidents in the workplace accounted for 8.4% of all personal injury awards in 2011, compared to 11% of all awards in 2010. The […]

Council fined after girl trapped in swimming pool

Castle Point Borough Council has been fined following an incident where a seven-year old girl was trapped by a water outlet at a swimming pool. The girl was using the swimming pool with her great grandfather in May 2009. Her hair was sucked into the water sampling outlet on the side of the pool, trapping […]

A Step Too Far? A Personal Injury Lawyer’s Perspective on the Gill Review

From a personal injury practitioner’s perspective there are serious questions whether two major proposals in the Gill Review would improve access to justice. The Cabinet Secretary for Justice welcomed Lord Gill’s report in the Scottish Parliament by describing it as “hard hitting” and “the first system wide review in modern times”. The writer concurs in […]