Encirc fined £507,000 for broken arm after forklift truck collision

Encirc Ltd, a producer of glass bottles for the drinks industry was fined £507,290 (inc.costs) after an employee was struck by a fork lift truck in Chester.

The circumstances were:

• Encirc failed to take effective measures to ensure its workers were correctly segregated from fork lift trucks.
• Encirc had a poor system of work which was not enforced for the workers who were most exposed to the risk.
• Encirc were served with an Improvement Notice in 2007 for poor segregation in the yard and warehouse areas.
• There was an incident involving an FLT in 2008 when an employee was injured.
• On 14 December 2015 an employee collided with a fork lift truck which resulted in him breaking his arm.

The HSE inspector said
“Poor segregation leads to accidents. There was a failure to properly plan work and this accident highlights the risks that are involved. Incidents relating to work place transport can be avoided if effective measures are taken.”