Scaffold firm in court after scaffolders caught on film

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Scaffmag Newsdesk
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photo-2A scaffolding firm boss has been prosecuted after he and his employees were caught on film balancing on a single tube some nine metres above ground.

The photos of the incident at a three-storey office in Horley on 4 February 2014, taken by a shocked member of the public, were sent to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which investigated.   Redhill Magistrates (4 Nov) heard how Jason Hewett, 44, the owner of Surrey- based Crest Scaffolding Services, had put his own life and the lives of two scaffolders in jeopardy by failing to have any fall prevention measures in place.

HSE, which brought the prosecution against Mr Hewett for safety breaches, told the court that one photo clearly depicts two workers balancing on a single pole with no guardrails to prevent them from falling from a dangerous height. Neither of them wore a harness.

A second photo shows two scaffolders working from boards but, once again, there was not one guardrail to be seen and no harnesses were in use to protect the men.

Jason Hewett, of Benhams Drive, Horley, Surrey, was fined £265 and ordered to pay £511 in costs after admitting a breach of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.

After the hearing, HSE Inspector Amanda Huff said:

“Jason Hewett put his own life at risk and the lives of two other workers by carrying out this scaffolding job in a totally unsafe manner.  Anyone falling from nine metres would likely be killed and that type of disregard for safety is totally unacceptable.

“Mr Hewett failed to follow basic safety precautions and heed the professional guidance available to scaffolding companies. Where practical when erecting scaffolding, they should work from a fully-boarded scaffold and guardrail. If this is not possible, all scaffolders should wear clipped-on harnesses.”

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87 COMMENTS

  1. The health and safety forms we sign are just to stop us claiming against injury..the policy is to just get job done.most sites get three forms signed without giving you time to read..I recently signed for a site save video but site agent didnt want to bore me with the forty minute film….

  2. D&B RAM signed on manor hse site two minutes later supervisor had me climb out window jump over parapit climb down lift .no ladders grabbed a handrail came of in my hand reported it as a near miss got sacked two minutes later lol

  5. I,d like to see how you are expected to slide down a .6mtr, hanger, 60meters above the ground bend over double lot fix your ledgers in 50yrs I only heard of one death and that was caused by others,

  11. What a joke.
    We can’t even pass clips nowdays.
    Greenies coming into the game struggling to pick up a 6.3 tube and trying to ban it for being too heavy.
    Bad enough watching them struggling to pick up a 4.0m aluminium ladder beam and to top things up they ask you for a hand.
    Like wtf man should try picking up a 6.0 steel ladder beam.

  22. Behave Jack Erai u sound like an instructor at collij, if u would rather put a 3rd handrail in then use steps to run this in its up 2 u. By the time uv done that iv done the job am on way home inda lorry wiv a fee beers. Enjoy ur 6pm finish SG guideline wanker

  32. If all scaffolders took a stand and refused to work or abide by rules laid out by non scaffolders about their own safety. I’ve never met a scaffolder yet that intends to have a fall or to teach an up and coming lad an unsafe work practise

  70. The way i see it is, if you pressure people with less moeny on jobs, this is the outcome.. I’ve been in the trade for 8 years now and constantly they tell you all these methods to make things safer but when the balance sheet comes back and produtivity isn’t where it should be you really have no choice. Thsi is a high risk job and the money should reflwct how much time it takes to do things safe.
    Not sure this was the case here but in my opinion, this happens because engineers decided to ckme up with a set squarage to reach each day which in reality not all job can run to a set squarage.