A self-employed roofer has been handed a suspended prison sentence after a man suffered serious injuries after falling from scaffold in Devon.
The roofer was given a 16-week custodial sentence, suspended for 12 months, after the man more than 25 feet while working for him.
On 13 June 2023, the man had been manually carrying old roof slates down a ladder attached to the scaffold platform at a domestic property in Honiton, East Devon. Ladders were used to transfer the heavy tiles to and from the scaffolding platform and this practice was not, so far as reasonably practicable, safe. He fell and broke five vertebrae, and sustained skull and rib fractures. He was taken by air ambulance to hospital, where he was put into an induced coma for five days. He still suffers from the effects of his injuries.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the roofer failed to ensure the health, safety and welfare of his employee as he did not undertake any planning or appropriately supervise the work at height or supply suitable equipment to do the task safely.
The roofer pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations. He was sentenced to 16 weeks imprisonment, suspended for 12 months and ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work in the community at Exeter Magistrates’ Court. He was also ordered to pay prosecution costs of £10,875.
Falls from height account for around half of all deaths in the construction industry. The risks of working at height and the control measures are well established, including the need to supervise the work appropriately. Alternative methods of moving materials up and down from a scaffold platform are available and must be considered when planning roofing projects.
It is vital that employers plan work at height on any size building or roof work project. Every employer should take suitable and sufficient measures to prevent any person falling a distance liable to cause personal injury. While ladders can be used for accessing a scaffold platform, HSE guidance is clear that they should only be used for low risk and short duration tasks. Work equipment or other measures must be used to prevent falls where working at height cannot be avoided.
SOURCE – IOSH
