PSV Glass and Glazing Limited fined £200k after worker crushed

An investigation found there was an inadequate system of work to move the crates

A glass company has been fined £200,000 after an employee broke two ribs and fractured his vertebra after being crushed by a crate.

The man was working for PSV Glass and Glazing Limited when he became trapped underneath the crate in June 2021.

The 29-year-old had been moving the crate, which weighed about 110 stone (700kg), with the help of a colleague at the firm's warehouse in Middleton.

The firm admitted a safety breach at Manchester Magistrates' Court.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said the workers had placed the crate of replacement glass on the top of a set of skates and intended to push the load across the warehouse.

While doing this however, the crate became unbalanced and fell, trapping the worker underneath, the HSE said.

'Inadequate system'

Their investigation found PSV Glass and Glazing Limited's system of work used to move crates in the warehouse was hazardous.

A HSE spokesman said: "In addition to an inadequate system of work to move the crates, the company also had no suitable risk assessment despite a previous similar incident.

"Had the warehouse been less congested, a more suitable method of moving the crates could have been used, such as a proprietary pallet handling truck."

PSV Glass & Glazing Limited, of Hillbottom Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

The company was fined £200,000 and ordered to pay £4,897.05 in costs.

HSE inspector Sharon Butler said "this incident could so easily have been avoided".

"Employers should ensure they carry out an assessment of the risks when moving and handling loads and that the correct equipment is identified and used," she said.