UK rental company Nationwide Platforms, part of the Loxam group, has been fined £900,000 following a fatal scissor lift incident at one of its depots in 2021.
Lee Benham, 45, was a lead driver for the company based at its Liskeard branch in Cornwall. On the 4th of November 2021, Benham and two other drivers arrived at the depot at 6:00 am to load up the trucks for the morning deliveries.
Benham went into the workshop to collect a 40ft slab electric scissor lift. To access the unit, he had to move another scissor lift out of the way. The upper controls were draped over a platform and clipped onto the toeboard. As a result, the controllers were reversed, so that when he operated the drive function in the instinctive direction, instead of moving away from him, the lift came towards him, crushing him against the other scissor lift.
The headroom and door heights in the workshop were more than adequate for the unit to be operated from the platform or via the ‘wander lead’ to the side.
Nationwide said that it has fully supported and cooperated with the HSE investigation and is keen to share any details of what occurred so that others might benefit and help avoid something similar happening to others.
The investigation acknowledged that Benham was experienced and had been in the job for six years. He was fully trained and had all the required certifications. The investigation also found that the lift had been operated in an unsanctioned way, when clearly defined methods and procedures were in place for moving and loading machines, one or more of which was likely to have contributed to the tragic incident.
However, Nationwide was found to have been at fault for failing to sufficiently consider the dangers of operating machinery via moveable controls and especially for not having any supervision or monitoring in place at that time of the day. At the same time, there was no CCTV coverage inside the workshops, although there were cameras in place to cover the whole yard and trucks were equipped with cameras to monitor activity around the vehicles.
Nationwide Platforms pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and was fined £900,000, plus costs of £12,405.
Lee Benham and family
HSE inspector Simon Jones said: “This was a tragic incident and a stark reminder to businesses to be thorough in their risk assessment. The situation which led to Lee’s death would not have arisen had appropriate control measures been in place.”
Brian Stead, who has covered the incident for Nationwide added: "Firstly I would like to stress at the heart of this incident is a family torn apart by the accidental death of a much respected colleague at our Liskeard depot in 2021. No amount of words or actions by ourselves can put that right."
"We accept the findings of the court and will continue our close workings with the HSE, we have, since the incident, reviewed our guidance around management training and driver supervision, moreover we are unwavering in our goal to make working at height safer across the industry."
Vertikal Comment
This was a tragic incident with a relatively young person losing his life and leaving his much-loved wife Kelly without a husband and two children without their father. Kelly Benham said: “Lee was my soulmate, my best friend, my rock. Now I have nothing apart from my girls. There are no words that can describe when you have had your heart ripped out. Our lives are in pieces, and it is just the three of us now.”
Since this incident occurred there have been further similar incidents, including one in the UK. Hopefully, Nationwide’s candour and willingness to discuss this tragic incident will help other drivers and companies avoid a similar occurrence. Nationwide is a company that has all the formal safety practices in place and tries to go the extra mile to run a safe working environment for all its staff.
Hopefully, Lee Benham will not have died in vain. As we head into a new year, we should also think that his family will have to relive the tragedy as news services report on the judgement this week.
Snakes and Ladders
Tragic accident and loss.
They abound, Real world learning would consist of companies complying with H&S and not a blind chasing a number of machines on hire.
half day
That’s ok “ mega” I was just pointing out a few errors in the story, “ dog walking “ a machine is a safe practice if carried out correctly, checking the control box, checking the wheels are straight before manoeuvre, checking your route for obstacles, it’s all simple stuff, being aware of your surroundings, my personal experience of 17 years as a driver tells me it’s safe if all factors are mitigated for. Ongoing training and and engagement is the key, not penalising drivers over stimulating on H&S which will have a negative effect. There are lessons to be learned,,but as in any industry there is always a risk, it needs to be managed in a controlled way and working with core staff who are involved in the day to day running of the business
mega
Sorry for your loss half day, and i am in no way trying to insinuate anything. It's just that if anything positive can come from this i would like to be a part of it. We have a team of guys that do this all the time and i just want to try and make them safer, nothing else.
half day
As someone who knew and worked with Lee personally his death was a tragic loss, a tragic million to one sequence of events, he was not “ dog walking” a machine as stated, he was moving it to gain better access, Lee was very aware of H&S and was a “ by the book” driver, also he was not a “ lead driver “ at the time but that does not reflect his diligence. I knew Lee for the six years he worked at NWP and feel his loss every day
mega
Initial discussions internally suggest that we would either be in the machine, or walking beside it with the control box on a wander lead, NOT attached to the machine and certainly not in front or behind? There are instances where this is the only way to move/load machines, indeed sometimes the safest way. Loading large scissors with rails down etc? Again, thoughts would be appreciated.
They abound
Thoughts and condolences to family, friends and colleagues. A machine in a workshop situation, where it may be under repair, is obviously in a different state to one considered to be a fully functional one ready for despatch. I know of at least one very big site, by a very big name contractor, who insist on machines being box-walked, and I think they were involved in the incident referred to in the main article. Mega, I totally agree, real world learning is vital to avoid repeats of this tragedy.
mega
Firstly I can only express our thoughts and prayers to Lees family, a truly terrible loss. Nationwides actions by releasing these statements, instead of hoping it will disappear, are to be commended. As a Company owner i have huge concerns regarding the "correct" procedure for walking machines and would welcome others comments. Perhaps we could debate and learn from this tragedy. Guidance is great, real world learning is also important. I await with interest, others opinions.
Snakes and Ladders
Tragic accident and loss.
They abound, Real world learning would consist of companies complying with H&S and not a blind chasing a number of machines on hire.
half day
That’s ok “ mega” I was just pointing out a few errors in the story, “ dog walking “ a machine is a safe practice if carried out correctly, checking the control box, checking the wheels are straight before manoeuvre, checking your route for obstacles, it’s all simple stuff, being aware of your surroundings, my personal experience of 17 years as a driver tells me it’s safe if all factors are mitigated for. Ongoing training and and engagement is the key, not penalising drivers over stimulating on H&S which will have a negative effect. There are lessons to be learned,,but as in any industry there is always a risk, it needs to be managed in a controlled way and working with core staff who are involved in the day to day running of the business
mega
Sorry for your loss half day, and i am in no way trying to insinuate anything. It's just that if anything positive can come from this i would like to be a part of it. We have a team of guys that do this all the time and i just want to try and make them safer, nothing else.
half day
As someone who knew and worked with Lee personally his death was a tragic loss, a tragic million to one sequence of events, he was not “ dog walking” a machine as stated, he was moving it to gain better access, Lee was very aware of H&S and was a “ by the book” driver, also he was not a “ lead driver “ at the time but that does not reflect his diligence. I knew Lee for the six years he worked at NWP and feel his loss every day
mega
Initial discussions internally suggest that we would either be in the machine, or walking beside it with the control box on a wander lead, NOT attached to the machine and certainly not in front or behind? There are instances where this is the only way to move/load machines, indeed sometimes the safest way. Loading large scissors with rails down etc? Again, thoughts would be appreciated.
They abound
Thoughts and condolences to family, friends and colleagues. A machine in a workshop situation, where it may be under repair, is obviously in a different state to one considered to be a fully functional one ready for despatch. I know of at least one very big site, by a very big name contractor, who insist on machines being box-walked, and I think they were involved in the incident referred to in the main article. Mega, I totally agree, real world learning is vital to avoid repeats of this tragedy.
mega
Firstly I can only express our thoughts and prayers to Lees family, a truly terrible loss. Nationwides actions by releasing these statements, instead of hoping it will disappear, are to be commended. As a Company owner i have huge concerns regarding the "correct" procedure for walking machines and would welcome others comments. Perhaps we could debate and learn from this tragedy. Guidance is great, real world learning is also important. I await with interest, others opinions.