AJM Service (Midlands) Ltd has been sentenced after an employee was fatally injured in Liverpool after falling six metres through a roof whilst working on a replacement roof project.
Liverpool Crown Court heard that on 22 May 2017, roofer Marius Andrus was completing snagging work on a replacement roof when he fell through a fragile part made of asbestos cement sheets and sustained fatal injuries.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the area accessed did not have safety nets fitted and that the employer failed to take reasonably practicable measures to reduce the risk to those working on the roof.
AJM Services pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The company was fined £51,000 and ordered to pay costs of £5,000.
Speaking after the hearing, Andy McGrory, HSE inspector, said: “This was a tragic incident, which resulted in a needless loss of life and could have easily been avoided by properly planning the work and ensuring appropriate safeguards were in place.
“Those in control of work at height have a responsibility to devise safe methods of working, which should include providing clear and comprehensive information for their workers and ensuring that they are adequately supervised.”
Pearsons Glass, which owns the building, pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, section 3, at an earlier hearing and was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court in February 2021. The company was fined £80,000 and ordered to pay costs of £6,656.
>>Read more from the HSE here.
