Farm worker's warning after quad bike crashes

Erin Gailey was hurt in two quad bike crashes in her first year working in farming

A farm worker is warning people of the dangers of her profession after she was hurt in two quad bike crashes in her first year in the industry.

Erin Gailey, a herdsperson on a farm in Shropshire suffered multiple broken bones in the crashes in December 2019 and December 2020.

The 23-year-old spoke out after figures published by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) claimed to show farming was the most dangerous job in Britain.

According to the research, 20% of workplace deaths happen on farms despite farmers making up just 1% of the working population.

Ms Gailey told BBC Radio Shropshire she moved away from her home in Evesham, Worcestershire, to work on a different farm in Shropshire when she was 18.

She was asked to go out on a quad bike on her fifth day and said she told her employer she had no experience with the vehicles.

“I was told ‘here’s the throttle of the bike, here are the brakes, the helmet is in the workshop somewhere’ and I got sent off. That was it,” she said.

Erin Gailey said she broke bones in her hands and legs in the crashes

As she was riding along a rain-soaked cow track, the bike slid off and she crashed into a fence post, breaking bones in both her hands.

She said she was off work for five weeks but when she came back, she was still using the quad bike every day.

On Christmas Day 2020, she crashed with a car as she pulled out of a junction, breaking her right leg which left her unable to work for five months.

Ms Gailey said she left the farm shortly after returning to work following a brake failure on one of the quad bikes.

She agreed farming was a dangerous industry and urged people to “know their limitations” before going into the sector.

“You could have the best employer in the world that has ticked every single box and done everything right but if you’re putting yourself in a stupid situation then things can still go wrong,” she said.

According to the HSE figures, 27 deaths were recorded on farms in Britain over the last year.

A charity, the Farm Safety Foundation, said it was a worldwide problem and there needed to be a "significant change in culture".

Spokeswoman Stephanie Berkeley said: "We cannot continue to tolerate poor safety behaviours, we cannot assume that its somebody else’s job to drive this change in culture and we cannot rely on luck when going about our daily tasks.”