Court Summary - at a glance
Date of offence:
11 December 2015
Plea:
Guilty
Decision:
Convicted
Final decision date:
Fine imposed:
$42,000
Safety lessons learned:
- Provide training on procedures and work instructions and ensure assessment of competency before unsupervised work is allowed to commence;
- Implement an effective system to ensure drivers and loaders share information about the route and delivery sequence;
- Implement an effective system to ensure that delivery trucks are checked for unsafe leans prior to loading and before each delivery; and
- Ensure there is an effective system in place to identify and control hazards at delivery sites and those hazards are communicated to all employees that may be required to deliver to those sites.
Defendant name:
Viridian Glass Limited Partnership
Industry:
Manufacturing
Date of offence:
11 December 2015
Facts in brief:
The Defendant company is a provider of residential and commercial glass.
On the day of the incident, an employee of the Defendant was delivering a sheet of glass to the Oamaru Glass Colourplus site using an A-frame truck. An employee at Oamaru Glass Colourplus, was assisting with the unloading when 13 sheets of glass weighing approximately 636kg fell from the driver side of the truck and he was hit by falling glass.
An earlier delivery of glass was made leaving the passenger side of the truck empty. The delivery truck was parked in a loading zone that had a lean of approximately 3 degrees towards the gutter. The truck’s suspension was also sagging.
The victim (employee of Oamaru Glass Colourplus) suffered fractures to his right humerus, femur and tibia, a detached ACL in his right knee, radial nerve damage to his right arm as well as grazes and cuts to his right arm and leg.
The Defendant’s employee was exposed to the risk of harm.
On the day of the incident, an employee of the Defendant was delivering a sheet of glass to the Oamaru Glass Colourplus site using an A-frame truck. An employee at Oamaru Glass Colourplus, was assisting with the unloading when 13 sheets of glass weighing approximately 636kg fell from the driver side of the truck and he was hit by falling glass.
An earlier delivery of glass was made leaving the passenger side of the truck empty. The delivery truck was parked in a loading zone that had a lean of approximately 3 degrees towards the gutter. The truck’s suspension was also sagging.
The victim (employee of Oamaru Glass Colourplus) suffered fractures to his right humerus, femur and tibia, a detached ACL in his right knee, radial nerve damage to his right arm as well as grazes and cuts to his right arm and leg.
The Defendant’s employee was exposed to the risk of harm.
Offence section:
• Sections 6 and 50(1)(a) of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992
• Sections 15 and 50(1)(a) of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992
• Sections 15 and 50(1)(a) of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992
Date(s) charged:
Court:
Oamaru - District Court
Plea:
Guilty
Final decision date:
Decision:
Convicted
Fine imposed:
$42,000
Maximum fine available:
$250,000
Reparation:
$45,000
Related Documents:
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