Health and safety slip up costs Asda over £10,000 (From Western Telegraph)

Health and safety slip up costs Asda over £10,000

4:10pm Friday 29th August 2008 in

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Supermarket giant Asda has been ordered to pay over £10,000 after admitting health and safety offences at its Pembroke Dock store.

During a routine inspection at the store in October, 2005, Pembrokeshire County Council Health and Safety officers noted that an accident had occurred earlier in the year in which an Asda employee had suffered an injury requiring a month off work after slipping in the walk-in freezer.

The inspectors carried out a full investigation and found an excessive build up of ice on the freezer floor.

To compound matters, the emergency panic button was blocked by shelving and stock and the internal safety release handle on the freezer door of the was broken.

At Haverfordwest Magistrates yesterday (Thursday), Asda Stores Limited was fined £3,500 with £6,000 costs being awarded to the Council.

The company admitted to a charge under Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) which places a duty on employers to protect the health, safety and welfare of employees.

Asda was also fined £650 for failing to report the accident within ten days.

Speaking after the court case, County Councillor Ken Rowlands, cabinet member for environmental and regulatory services, stressed that employers can, and should, create a work environment and culture where slips are much less likely to happen.

“Often the measures needed are simple and low-cost, but they will bring about significant reductions both in human suffering and costs” he said. “This case highlights the importance of controlling the risk of slipping and demonstrates that Health and Safety inspectors will take action on slips and trips where a significant risk of injury could be present.”