Southampton firm fined £1m after dock worker's 11-metre fall
It happened during work to replace a glass fall at the DP World terminal
Last updated 7th Aug 2024
A logistics company has been fined £1 million after a worker suffered serious injuries after falling from an 11-metre height in Southampton.
Christopher Hooper from Winchester was driving a straddle carrier which plunged through an open hole caused by contractors replacing a glass floor at the DP World terminal in Western Avenue on September 20th, 2022.
The now 31-year-old landed on a concrete floor, suffering fractures to his skull, back, pelvis, arm, wrist and ankle.
Inspectors from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found Mr Hooper’s employer, Southampton Container Terminals Limited, trading as DP World Southampton, failed to ensure there was a safe system of work at its site.
Their investigation found the firm ailed to ensure there was a system of work that ensured the replacement of the glass floor and routine maintenance work could be carried out safely at the same time.
The company also failed to ensure there was a risk assessment in place and failed to implement its own policy for the use of permits to work whilst working at height.
In his victim personal statement, Mr Hooper said the incident had left him 'feeling like a puppet in my life' as he has been moved from therapy to therapy multiple times.
"It feels like my life is in a waiting room, early out of hospital I had closer milestones that felt achievable whereas now no one can tell me what I can do next and that is really impacting my day-to-day life as I don’t know what the rest of my life will look like."
Southampton Container Terminals Limited, of Palace Street, Westminster, London pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £1 million and ordered to pay £11,664.59 in costs at Southampton Magistrates’ Court on 2 August 2024.
HSE inspector Francesca Arnold said:
"This incident has resulted in severe life-changing injuries for Mr Hooper, who is lucky to be alive. His life has completely changed because of Southampton Container Terminals Limited’s failure to produce a suitable risk assessment and implement straightforward control measures.
"The hazards of working at height are well known and documented and this prosecution should now remind employers that a failure to manage and implement effective measures can have serious consequences and they will be held accountable for this failure."
A spokesperson for DP World Southampton said:
"Keeping people safe is the absolute priority for everyone at DP World Southampton and we fully understand the impact that this incident has had on the worker affected and shall continue to do everything we can to support him.
"Our commitment to safety is evidenced by our track record and in particular the consistent enhancement in our Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) over the last 15 years, the result of a substantial investment in safety training, awareness, and infrastructure.”
"Although it was formally acknowledged in this case that our efforts to make people safer were a mitigating factor, regrettably we fell short of meeting our high safety standards this time.
"We would like to make it clear that we have reviewed our operational systems and procedures and updated them as necessary to avoid any future incidents of a similar nature. We are confident that our dedicated team at DP World Southampton will continue to make progress in setting and maintaining the highest standards of safety in the industry."