Ryan FowlerBaker & Baker Products, located in Bromborough on the Wirral, has been fined £400,000 after an accident resulted in the amputation of an employee’s leg. Sharon Bramhall, 58, suffered the injury leading to the loss of her left leg below the knee, prompting legal action that concluded with the company’s sentencing at Liverpool Magistrates’ Court on March 25, 2024.
The incident occurred during a night shift on April 22, 2022, when Mrs. Bramhall was supervising a team conducting high-level cleaning. She was acting as a ‘banksman’, guiding an employee operating a mobile elevating work platform (MEWP) when the equipment turned and crushed her leg. The event was recorded by the company’s CCTV.
In the wake of the accident, Mrs. Bramhall underwent multiple surgeries and spent three months in the hospital. The impact of the injury necessitated her family’s relocation.
In court, Mrs. Bramhall shared: “I know I could have died. Sometimes I wake up and just wish I’d booked that night off work for some reason and none of this would have happened.”
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation revealed that Baker & Baker Products UK Limited had failed to establish a proper safety protocol for the use of MEWPs, including adequate training for their operation. As a result, the company pleaded guilty to breaching sections 2(1) and 33(1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, incurring a fine of £400,000 and costs of £7,266.
HSE inspector Ian Betley commented: “Sharon Bramhall suffered terrible injuries that will affect her for the rest of her life due to the failings of her employer. Vehicles continue to be a major cause of serious injuries in the workplace, and the first principle of any employer should be to keep people and vehicles apart.” He emphasized that proper safety measures could have prevented Mrs. Bramhall’s injuries.
