It has been revealed that the HSE is warning bosses to check their public liability cover and to make sure health and safety practices are up to standard. The warning comes after a work accident, when an employee died due to faulty equipment. The worker, who was collecting waste outside a pub near Eastington, near Aylesbury, was fatally injured when a 1,000-litre recycling bin fell on his head, in May 2004. It is believed that that a recycling bin fell from the bin hoist on the recycling lorry and landed on his head, killing him. The refuse company the victim was working for has subsequently been prosecuted by the HSE. At Aylesbury Crown Court, the jury found the firm guilty of breaching sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The firm was fined £130,000 and ordered to pay out costs of £220,000. In the same trial, another man, from Milton Keynes Ltd of Norfolk House Centre, Milton Keynes, was found not guilty of breaching section 3(1) of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act. Failures in the work system The claim is similar to another case, when a waste disposal company was charged with breaching health and safety legislation, after a member of the public was killed at the Civic Amenity Site in Newbury. HSE inspector, Dennis MacWilliam, noted that bosses are required by law to ensure that equipment is regularly maintained and is fit for workers to use. “This was an extremely tragic incident which has now left [the victim’s] widow to continue life without a loving husband. It could have been avoided if only a few simple measures had been in place. “Employers are legally required to make sure their equipment is regularly maintained and is fit for use by their workers. If the bin hoist on the recycling lorry had been maintained this incident would never have happened,” he said. Richard Berry, executive director of firm prosecuted, stated: “We deeply regret the death of an employee [...] whilst working on our Chiltern municipal contract over five years ago in May 2004. “No workplace accident is acceptable. Both legally and morally we have an obligation to take all reasonable steps to prevent such accidents. “At the time we had many safeguards in place, but the jury has concluded that in this particular case our efforts did not meet the high standard required.” He added that the company the firm has ‘invested significantly in training and equipment to reduce accidents’ over the last five years and to ‘develop a culture of environmental and safety awareness’. It had a ‘continually improving safety record.’ “Right from the top of our organisation we are committed to ensuring we maintain and improve workplace safety for both our employees and the public every single day,” he said. The HSE has launched a programme called ‘The Shattered Lives’ campaign in an attempt to raise awareness ofwork hazards and dangerous amongst both employers and employees, so work deaths and personal injury can be lowered.