A pub chain has been prosecuted for health and safety breaches after an employee suffered a hand injury.
The court heard the employee was preparing to unload a drinks delivery when an open but unsecured internal cellar hatch door fell back onto his hand.
An accident report filed after the incident at the Slug and Lettuce in Colchester led to an investigation by the local authority.
Unsafe
Colchester Borough Council found gas struts originally installed to ensure the hatch’s safe opening and closing had been removed – neither the struts nor alternatives to prevent the doors falling back once opened had been replaced.
The investigators also found:
- The company did not have suitable and sufficient risk assessments regarding the safe delivery of goods; and
- The cellar hatch was not adequately guarded when open to prevent someone falling down the cellar shaft.
Stonegate Pub Company Ltd was fined £100,000 with costs of £3,792.
Fit for Purpose
Colchester Borough Council say its “role is to protect everyone in the workplace by ensuring that premises are maintained in good working order”.
It added “risk assessments must be fit for purpose and safe systems of work adhered to”.
