Kenneth Armitage was having his bathroom converted into a wet room but the people doing the work left an unguarded hole in the floor over a weekend.
Workers from construction company Cooper & Westgate finished up for the week at the house on Whitestone Drive in Huntington, York on Friday 8th February 2019. The had removed floorboards to access pipework but made no attempt to leave the site safe.
The following evening, on 9th February, Mr Armitage’s son-in-law found the old man dead on the kitchen floor, having fallen through the bathroom hole.
A Health & Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found that Cooper & Westgate had failed to adequately secure the hole as its employees were not properly trained. The company had also failed to undertake a suitable and sufficient risk assessment, nor a method statement for the work involved.
Cooper & Westgate Co. Ltd, of Navigation Court, Calder Park, Wakefield, West Yorkshire was found guilty of breaching Section 2(1) and Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. It was fined £150,000 and ordered to pay £50,000 in costs at Leeds Magistrates’ Court on 17th September 2024.
HSE inspector Yolande Burns-Sleightholme said after the hearing: “Employers need to fully assess and control the risks from work at height, caused by creating holes in domestic properties and recognise the importance of securing them effectively. They should then pass this knowledge on to their employees through suitable training and guidance.
“This incident could so easily have been avoided had Cooper & Westgate properly assessed the risks, put in place safe working practices and provided the correct training to its employees.”
