Costain and Galliford Try have been fined a combined total of £2.8m after a worker’s foot became trapped in a rotating screw, leading to the amputation of three toes.
Liverpool Crown Court heard how, on 5 March 2015, Costain and Galliford Try Building were upgrading a water treatment works in Cheshire.
The worker’s foot became trapped during commissioning work and a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found that both companies had failed to properly plan and manage the commissioning work.
Both were found guilty of breaching Section 3 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and were fined £1,400,000 each with a total of £101,046.20 costs.
HSE inspector David Argument said: “This injury was easily preventable. The commissioning work should have been properly planned and managed.
“Employers should make sure they properly assess and apply effective control measures to minimise the risk posed by dangerous parts of machinery.”
