Pontrilas Timber & Builders’ Merchants Ltd has been fined £3,500 after a worker’s hand was nailed to a pallet.
The Herefordshire-based company pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety regulations and was also ordered to pay £8,973 costs at Hereford Magistrates Court.
The court heard that the employee had been operating an automatic wooden pallet making machine on March 28, 2008 when the machine started unexpectedly. His hand was drawn in and trapped beneath a beam of nailing hammers, before being nailed to the top of a pallet.
The Health and Safety Executive, which brought the case, said there was no guard or protective device across the front of the machine to prevent access to dangerous moving parts.
“This was a horrific incident that could have been easily prevented,” said HSE inspector Luke Messenger.
“The fact the machinery started unexpectedly was an added complication, but with the proper safety precautions in place, the injured party’s hands wouldn’t have been able to be pulled inside.”
