A scaffolding company faces fines and costs totalling £85,000 following an accident which paralysed a worker.
Father-of-three David Collins was unloading behind Argos, in Festival Park, Etruria, when a tonne of scaffold tubes landed on him, fracturing his spine and leaving him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
Construction company Morgan Ashurst was carrying out a shop refurbishment at the time and Mr Collins, aged 34, was working for subcontractor Spectra Scaffolding.
At Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court yesterday, Spectra bosses pleaded guilty to two breaches of health and safety standards.
Bernard Thorogood, prosecuting, said: “On the day the accident happened Mr Collins was lifting equipment from the back of a vehicle with a mobile crane. It was a bundle of scaffold tubes.
“There was a defective safety catch on the hook, they came out and he was trapped under them. He suffered devastating consequences.”
The court heard the equipment was poorly maintained and Mr Collins, who lives in Bury, was only trained to carry out routine lifting operations.
He had already delivered a load to the front of the Argos store that morning, in November 2008, as planned but had then been told to go to the back and unload in a small compound without any help.
Bury-based company Spectra Scaffolding was formed in 2005 and delivers, constructs and dismantles scaffolding across the North West.
John Cooper, defending the firm, said: “The lift was more complicated than originally anticipated. This accident occurred because of the changes imposed by Morgan Ashurst.
“This prosecution will have a huge effect on this business. They have 29 employees and this will have a devastating blow.”
The court heard the three directors only take £500 a month as salaries but also take dividends of £42,000 a year each.
The company has been fined £40,000 and ordered to pay £45,000 prosecution costs spread over four years.
Judge Robert Trevor-Jones said: “This was a catastrophic and life-altering accident.
“Mr Collins is now a paraplegic and the rest of his life has been blighted.
“The company had a good safety record and this was an isolated incident.
“They have taken many steps to remedy the situation with a full review of procedures and a revision of the lifting plan.
“But the failings led to a cataclysmic consequences for Mr Collins.”
A private prosecution is due to start at Manchester Crown Court in February against Bury-based Spectra Scaffolding and Morgan Ashurst.
