Man crushed to death by forklift truck

A firm has been prosecuted after a worker was crushed to death by a forklift truck following an accident at work.

The worker had been using a forklift truck which was damaged fiver weeks earlier in a previous incident.

The off-side cab window which acts as a safety guard for the driving had been missing.

However, the firm failed to repair the vehicle and after accidently activating the arm of the truck, the man was crushed to death.

In court, the employer pleaded guilty of breaching the health and safety legislation and was fined £150,000 with an additional £50,000 in court fees.

An injury lawyer, David Urpeth, welcomed the prosecution.

He said: "Employers are under a duty to provide workers with suitable plant and machinery so that they are not injured in a work accident.

Sadly, although this piece of work equipment was faulty, it was not taken out of use, leading to this tragic yet avoidable accident at work. I hope the fines imposed will act as a deterrent to other employers to ensure their workers are kept safe."