South Lanarkshire council fined in driver case

Derek Maitland, 37, of Castlemilk, Glasgow, sustained severe abdominal crush injuries when he became trapped between the lifting hoist and the side of a glass recycling vehicle he was operating as part of a three-man crew in January 2011.

Mr Maitland had unplugged the pendant control unit on the vehicle after noticing the side lifter had jammed, as was common practice when unexpected stoppages occurred. However, it appears the engine had been left running, which activated the mechanism and lowered the hoist.

The employee required extensive surgery to repair damaged arteries and had most of his colon and small bowel removed following the incident in East Kilbride.

Despite the severity of his injuries, Mr Maitland has returned to work though he is now unable to eat or digest food and must be fed intravenously.

Although the councils safe system of work stated that employees should not attempt to repair faulty equipment and that any defects should be reported, it failed to specifically mention the removal and reconnection of the pendant controllers.

Following an investigation, the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) concluded the incident occurred as a result of a combination of inadequate risk assessment, lack of safe system of work, and a failure to provide adequate supervision or training.

South Lanarkshire council pleaded guilty to three breaches of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and was prosecuted accordingly at Hamilton Sheriff Court yesterday (December 18).

Commenting on the case. HSE inspector Eve Macready said: Mr Maitland is clearly fortunate not to have died as a result of this incident and the surgery that was required was truly lifesaving. He has, however, been left with serious, life-changing injuries and only time will tell what complications may arise in relation to his medical condition.

This was combined with insufficient training and instruction for employees involved in operating these vehicles and South Lanarkshire Council failed in its duty to protect its employees.

Colin McDowall, executive director of community and enterprise resources at the council, said: The council sincerely regrets this accident, which had serious consequences for our employee. The council has done everything it can to support Mr Maitland and it is to his immense credit that he has been able to return to work.

The council took responsibility for failings under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 at an early stage. While we had protocols in place which should have prevented the accident, these were not being followed. More should have been done to ensure those protocols were followed.

The council makes every possible effort to protect its employees and has a good health and safety record. We immediately took action to prevent any further accidents, and this was acknowledged by the court. There have been no further such accidents.