Get your roles right under CDM 2007 before it’s too late!!!
A construction company and two of its directors have been fined a total of £75,000 following the death of a member of the public at its building site.
A man wandered onto the construction site in the early hours of the morning which wasn’t properly secured, tripped over an unprotected edge and fell 2.4 metres into a basement courtyard; he was found dead later in the morning.
The HSE prosecuted the Company for breaching section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (failing to protect members of the public whether within or outside the workplace who may be affected by work activities) the company pleaded guilty and was fined £30,000 and ordered to pay costs of £6,500.
One director (who was also the client for the project) pleaded guilty to breaching Regulations 20(1) (a) (b) and (c) of the CDM Regulations 2007 (General duties of CDM Coordinator) was fined £15,000 and ordered to pay costs of £3,465.
The other director was fined £30,000 and ordered to pay costs of £6,500 after pleading guilty to breaching section 37(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (when an offence committed by a company was committed with the consent / connivance or negligence of a director, the director, is also guilty of the offence); the director was disqualified as a director for five years.
There are a number of lessons to be learnt here; ensure that you know and understand the different roles under CDM and appoint a competent CDM-C; one who is familiar with the law
If you want further information on how we can help you with the role of the CDM-C, call Andrew today on 07870 777303
