Dublin waste disposal company fined €60,000 following fatal accident where an employee was struck by a reversing work vehicle.
Today, Monday 8th April, at Criminal Courts of Justice, Parkgate St, Saint James, Dublin 8, Judge Martin Nolan imposed a fine of €60,000 on Padraig Thornton Waste Disposal Ltd T/A Thorntons Recycling following a fatal work-related incident at Dún An Óir Estate, Old Bawn, Tallaght, Dublin 24 on 19th March 2020.
The company pleaded guilty to Section 8(1) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 2005 as it relates to Section 8(2)(a) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 and contrary to Section 77(2)(a) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, in that it failed to manage and conduct work activities, specifically the operation of a refuse collection vehicle for the collection of refuse wheelie bins by employees in relation to a place of work under its control. The company also pleaded Regulation 31(c) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007 and contrary to Section 77(2)(c) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 in that it failed to ensure that work equipment within the meaning of the said Regulations, namely a refuse collection vehicle, was maintained in such a way as to reduce risks to the users of the work equipment and to other persons at work.
The accident resulted in an employee being struck by the reversing vehicle and fatality injured while collecting domestic refuse.
Mr. Mark Cullen, Assistant Chief Executive, HSA said “the circumstances of this accident, which resulted in an employee receiving fatal injuries, should be a warning to all employers to make sure that they carry out risk assessments in advance of the work activities commencing, in order to ensure appropriate control measures are identified and put in place to prevent fatal and serious injuries.”
