Balfour Beatty fined £2.6M after fatal trench collapse

Balfour Beatty charged £2.6M, pleading guilty to safety offences after employee was killed in trench collapse.

Balfour Beatty pleaded guilty to safety offences at Preston Crown Court yesterday, after employee, James Barry, aged 32, was killed when a trench collapsed. He was laying ducting for new cable for the offshore windfarm that was being built off the coast of Haysham, Lancashire.

The incident took place on the 14 April 2010, but has taken six years for the case to reach its legal conclusion, with the Health and Safety Executive finding that the trench was dug to a depth of 2.4 metres without any shoring.

The court heard that Balfour Beatty failed to adequately risk assess the works or control the way in which the excavation took place.

HSE Inspector Chris Hatton said after the hearing: “The level of this fine should serve as a warning to industry not to ignore health and safety matters.

“Balfour Beatty failed to adequately assess, plan and supervise the work being undertaken. Trench collapses are easy to prevent, and it is disappointing that James’ life was lost in such a tragic way.

“The family has shown great patience and support throughout this investigation which is a credit to both them and James’ memory.”

The fine of £2.6M is one of the largest seen in the construction sector, following the change of sentencing guidelines in February from legal professionals, warning that penalties would increase significantly following site accidents.

Balfour Beatty has stated a commitment to Zero Harm on its sites, however this is the company’s second seven-figure fine this year following fatalities on its sites. Earlier this year, Balfour Beatty was fined £1M after a road worker was killed on the A2 in Kent while repairing traffic barriers.

 

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