Kars Group Pty Ltd

Incident description:

On 30 January 2010 a 22 year old worker was killed after being trapped between the tipper tray and chassis of a tipper truck.

Kars Group Pty Ltd employed the worker as an excavator operator and labourer, and owned the tipper truck involved in the incident.

The court found the defendant held obligations under s.28 of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995 being a person in control of a business or undertaking.

The incident occurred at the landfill station where the worker was discharging waste materials. Although the incident was not witnessed, the worker was found dead, trapped between the tipper tray and the chassis of the vehicle. The tipper tray was usually operated from inside the cabin, but the cable between the lever and control mechanism was broken. The tipper could alternatively be operated by direct manipulation of the control mechanism attached to the chassis.

The investigation findings presented to the court revealed that:

• the defendant had identified the hazard (the pinch point between the tipper tray and the chassis)
• the defendant had not assessed the risk relating to the identified hazard
• the defendant had not decided on or implemented any control measures to manage the risk
• the tipper truck was not maintained to a regular servicing schedule
• the provision of poorly maintained plant was a major contributing factor to the incident.

Court result:

The defendant pleaded guilty in the Ipswich Industrial Magistrates Court on 14 June 2010 to breaching s.24(1) of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995, having failed to meet its workplace health and safety obligations. The defendant was sentenced with no conviction recorded.

Industrial Magistrate Ms Virginia Sturgess ordered the defendant pay a penalty of $80 000 as well as investigation and professional costs totalling $3050.

In reaching a decision, the industrial magistrate acknowledged that:

• the lack of maintenance of the vehicle, and lack of risk assessment, were key considerations and contributors to the breach, and consequently the fatal crush injuries
• proper maintenance of the vehicle, and procedures on what to do if the operating mechanism failed, may have led to the incident being avoided.

In deciding the penalty imposed, Industrial Magistrate Sturgess took into account:

• the defendant was a smaller corporate business
• had not been prosecuted previously for any other workplace health and safety breaches
• cooperated with the investigation and entered an early plea of guilty.

She also accepted the joint and agreed submissions of the parties that the nature of the incident was of low objective gravity and that the defendant had spent a considerable amount of money engaging a safety consultant after the incident.

Considerations for prevention:

(Commentary under this heading is not part of the Court's decision.)

When working in industry where there is exposure to risks from moving plant, obligation holders should apply a risk management approach that includes an auditing and inspection regime, and a rigorous maintenance program. This will ensure the selection of suitable control measures is not only implemented, but monitored and reviewed on a regular basis.

Risk management involves:

• identifying the hazards
• evaluating the consequences and likelihood of harm that may result from the hazard
• deciding and implementing control measures to prevent or minimise the level of the risk from the hazard
• monitoring the effectiveness of the control measures to ensure they remain working correctly.

When deciding and implementing control measures associated with the risk of crush injuries, obligation holders should consider the Plant Code of Practice 2005 as a practical guide on managing risks. For specific guidance to people conducting a business or undertaking, refer to Part 5 of the Code.

In particular the following sections of the code should be followed:

5.1 Risk management
5.4 Operation
5.5 Damaged plant
5.7 Plant with moving parts
5.12 Auditing
5.13 Inspection
5.14 Maintenance, servicing and cleaning
5.15 Repair
5.21 Providing information
5.22 Instructing, training and supervising workers.

Visit the Workplace Health and Safety Queensland website for more information on:

• Managing risk
• Plant, machinery and equipment
• Employer training options
• Training staff
• Plant Code of Practice 2005
• Risk Management Code of Practice 2007
• Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995.