A DROITWICH haulage firm has been ordered to bay more than £400,000 after a driver was crushed by a reversing vehicle.
Worcester Crown Court heard how, in December 2013, a Tooles Transport employee, 60-year-old Kevin Scott died when he helped a colleague reverse a vehicle and became trapped between it and his own vehicle.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) ensued and found drivers were routinely labelling up their loads in the yard while other lorries were returning to the yard and reversing in close proximity.
The probe deemed there to be no segregation of vehicles and pedestrians, lighting was inadequate and there was deep shadow between parked lorries.
The company, based at Rushock Trading Estate, was fined £150,000 and ordered to pay costs of £253,728.
HSE principal inspector Elizabeth Hornsby said: “Those in control of work have a responsibility to devise safe methods of working and to provide the necessary information, instruction and training to their workers in the safe system of working.
“If a suitable safe system of work had been in place prior to the incident, this tragic loss of life could have been prevented.”
