Building firm fined £900,000 after fatal wall collapse

press.hse.gov.uk/2019/03/14/building-firm-fined-900000-after-fatal-wall-collapse/

March 14, 2019

Building firm fined £900,000 after fatal wall collapse

A company has been fined £900,000 after the death of an employee who died from
head injuries when a wall collapsed on a construction site at Lyme Regis.

Bournemouth Crown Court heard how, on 2 June 2015, Thomas Telfer was working as
a bricklayer employed by Capstone Building Ltd, when he was struck by falling
masonry after a retaining wall failed as it was being back filled with concrete.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive found that the company had
failed to appropriately manage the work that was being carried out at the site at
Chatterton Heights, Lyme Regis and failed to ensure the health, safety and welfare of
employees on site, including Thomas Telfer.

Capstone building Limited, which is in administration, were found guilty after a trial to
breaching Section 2 and Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Etc Act 1974, were
£900,000 and ordered to pay costs of £60,336.99.

The firm’s sole director, Stephen Ayles, of Lomond Drive, Weymouth, was found not
guilty of the same charges.

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Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Ian Whittles said: “This tragic incident could
so easily have been avoided if the appropriate measures were in place to provide a
safe working practice.

“Companies should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate
enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards.”

Notes to Editors:

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for
workplace health and safety. We seek to prevent work-related death, injury and
ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours
across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual
businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific
expertise. www.hse.gov.uk
2. More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at:
www.legislation.gov.uk/
3. HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk

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