Building firm fined £160,000 after worker crushed
The worker was crushed by the telehandler after it slid down the embankment
- Published
A construction company has been fined £160,000 after a man was killed by a construction vehicle when it slid down an embankment and overturned.
Scott Bradley was crushed by the telehandler in the incident at a housing development in Lochwood Gardens, Easterhouse, near Glasgow on 11 May 2022.
The 44-year-old suffered a fatal head injury when he was partially ejected from the cab and crushed by the vehicle.
Merchant ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖs Partnership Limited pleaded guilty to a breach of construction regulations and health and safety legislation at a hearing at Glasgow Sheriff Court.
Prosecutors said Mr Bradley had been using the telehandler - a vehicle used to lift heavy loads on site - to move scaffolding parts behind partially built houses.
The vehicle's wheels went over the edge of the embankment while it was being reversed, which caused it to overturn.
Concerns were raised about the tidiness of the site
The court heard Mr Bradley, who lived with his wife and family in Larkhall, was an experienced telehandler driver and described by his colleagues as "safety conscious".
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the Glasgow-based company had not risk assessed the "traffic route" where the incident occurred.
HSE inspector James Caren said Merchant ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖs - which has since gone into liquidation - had failed to introduce measures to ensure the route was suitable for use.
Procurator Fiscal Richard Brown, prosecuting, said in court there were concerns about the untidiness of the site and "multiple examples" of uneven ground meaning scaffolding was not properly supported.
He said: "The unevenness of the road increased the risk of wheeled plant becoming unstable and tipping."
This included the possibility of it falling down the embankment, he said.
The hearing was told Merchant ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖs complied with improvement notices issued at time of the investigation.
Sheriff Louise Arrol KC said at the sentencing: "In this case, the harm caused could not have been greater.
"It is the consequence of the company's failure that Mr Bradley lost his life.
"His family have been devastated by his death - he was an experienced operative and colleagues spoke highly of him."
She added: "The sentence which I have imposed is not in any way commensurate his loss."