Archive for December, 2011

Theft of metal – The risks are growing

Tuesday, December 20th, 2011

Property owner insuranceIn August this year, Transport for London reported that nearly £300,000 worth of metal had been stolen from the system in the last year and is being sold for scrap. This includes £143,000 of material taken from bus stops over the last year. In addition, £291,000 was stolen from the Tube, DLR, Over-ground and Tramline making this a nightmare for commuters’ journeys as the cable theft has become a common cause for delay.

Thieves are going to even greater lengths to harvest various different metals, risking life as well as long prison sentences. Non-ferrous metals such as lead and copper are very desirable and they are not only costly to replace but the theft can interrupt the running of your business causing even further costs. Metals are often used in roof coverings and theft of these can lead to water damage in the building. In addition attractive amounts of cables and piping are often stored on construction sites and their loss can be very costly and delays build schedules which in turn lead to increased staff costs on projects.

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Injury not caused by repetitive strain.

Thursday, December 15th, 2011

A recent county court case demonstrates the importance of employers recording and maintaining records of risk assessments and health and safety training.

The claimant in the case was employed by the defendant as a manual parcel handler for just less than two years. He resigned when back pain made him unable to continue in his job. He brought proceedings against his employers alleging that a previously asymptomatic back condition had been exacerbated by his work. He claimed that the work was repetitive, had not been subject to sufficient risk assessment and that his employers had failed to provide a safe system of work.
The defendant denied liability on the basis that the job was a simple and straightforward one, had been properly risk assessed and was not repetitive. There was no previous history of any injuries arising from this work. It was accepted by both parties that the work could not have been done mechanically.

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Three year old’s death – Wall Designer charged

Tuesday, December 6th, 2011

A man who designed a wall which collapsed on a three year old girl, killing her, has been charged with gross negligence manslaughter. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decided the designer of the wall, which was also constructed by his company, Parcol Development Ltd, should be charged in relation to the death of the little girl on 26/7/2008 in Prestatyn, Wales.

Parcol Developments Ltd, of which the charged man was a director, was also charged with an offence under section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work at 1974 which requires all employers to conduct their business in a way that ensures, so far as is reasonably practicable, that others are not exposed to risk.

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