A firm has been fined £40,000 after an accident in Leeds left one of its employees paralysed.
Kelly Cookes, 32, was crushed when a pallet of insulation material fell on him, leaving him with spinal injuries and paralysed from the waist down, unable to live his life independently.
FGF Limited had pleaded guilty at Leeds Magistrates Court to
health and safety failures at
its Hudswell Road warehouse following the accident on
February 6, 2006, and was sentenced at Leeds Crown Court yesterday.
The prosecution by the health and safety services department of Leeds City Council was mounted against the Birmingham-based firm under Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 for failures in its policy and procedures, risk assessment and training.
The company, distributors of specialist building and insulation materials, has a number of satellite units around the country, including a distribution warehouse in Leeds.
Health and safety inspectors found that the company's safety record was poor and, at the
time of the accident, contact between the head office and the Leeds depot was less than
adequate.
The court heard the company has now appointed a health and safety officer.
