Company fined after 81-year-old man's fall death

Kenneth Armitage's death "could so easily have been avoided", the Health and Safety Executive says

A building firm has been ordered to pay more than £200,000 after an 81-year-old man fell to his death through a hole in his bathroom floor.

Kenneth Armitage's bathroom at his York home was being converted into a wet room by West Yorkshire-based firm Cooper and Westgate in 2019.

The floor had been partially removed and left uncovered on 8 February, with Mr Armitage found dead the following day by his son-in-law after ending up on the kitchen floor below.

The company was fined £150,000 and ordered to pay £50,000 in costs at Leeds Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday after being convicted of health and safety breaches.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found Cooper and Westgate failed to adequately guard the hole, which had been created to access pipework, as its employees were not properly trained.

The company also failed to undertake a suitable and sufficient risk assessment for the work involved at the address on Whitestone Drive in Huntington, the HSE said.

Mr Armitage's daughter Suzy said: "Our dad, who was sadly taken away from us, was everything to us, he was the kindest person you could ever meet.

“He was a fantastic dad to me, my brother and a loving grandad to all our children."

Mr Armitage fell through the hole in the first floor bathroom and ended up on the kitchen floor below

She continued: “I can’t believe he has gone, I keep thinking it’s a horrible nightmare and I will wake up and he’ll be there.

"Our hearts were broken that day and may never heal - it should have never happened."

Yolande Burns-Sleightholme, HSE inspector, said Mr Armitage's death "could so easily have been avoided" if the risks had been properly assessed and employees correctly trained.

“Employers need to fully assess and control the risks from holes in domestic properties and recognise the importance of securing them effectively," he said.

"They should then pass this knowledge on to their employees through suitable training and guidance."

Cooper and Westgate Co. Ltd, of Navigation Court, Wakefield, was found guilty of breaching Section 2(1) and Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

The firm has been approached for comment.

Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here.