By Sarah Donnelly · Published 28 May 2026 · 2 min read
A waste and recycling company in Cumbria has been fined £60,000 after a 44-year-old employee was struck and killed by a reversing telehandler at its Barrow-in-Furness facility.
Background
Stuart Garnet died from his injuries after the collision at H. Wicks (Lindal) Limited on 12 May 2022. A subsequent investigation by the Health and Safety Executive found the company had failed to organise the site to allow pedestrians and vehicles to circulate safely. The firm pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
Industry implications
Warrington Magistrates Court handed down the £60,000 fine alongside £6,624 in costs on 26 May 2026. The judgement reinforces the legal absolute that employers must separate vehicle routes from pedestrian zones. Poor traffic management is treated as a severe baseline failure by the courts and carries significant sentencing weight.
What contractors should do now
Site managers must review and physically segregate traffic routes immediately. Where complete separation is impossible, control measures such as dedicated walkways, physical barriers, blind-spot mirrors, and active traffic marshalling must be enforced without exception.
Expert view
Workplace transport incidents remain one of the most common causes of fatal injuries in the UK construction and waste sectors. HSE Principal Inspector Caroline Shorrock noted that a significant number of fatal accidents occur purely because of poor separation between pedestrians and vehicles. Had suitable separation measures been implemented, the fatality would have been avoided.
What happens next
Regulators are increasingly looking at site design rather than just driver error when investigating transport accidents. Principal contractors must expect intense scrutiny on their traffic management plans during upcoming site inspections.
Sources
- HSE Press Release — Health and Safety Executive
