1. Beachcroft Wansbroughs What happens if we get it wrong? Barrie Hall Solicitor

2. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Transco - £15 Million Hatfield – £13.5 million Corporate Manslaughter Bill

3. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Overview  Employer Duties  Consequences of failure - injury / disease / fatality  Costs - direct and indirect  Dealing with an accident

4. Beachcroft Wansbroughs The Duties of an Employer Common Law duty to provide:  A safe place of work  A safe system of work  A safe plant and equipment  Competent staff

5. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Statutory Duties Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992 ( updated 1999)  Workplace ( Health Safety and Welfare ) Regulations 1992  The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1992 (updated 1998) contd...

6. Beachcroft Wansbroughs  Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992  Personal Protective Equipment Regulations 1992  Health & Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992

7. Beachcroft Wansbroughs It’s gone wrong!  Injury  Disease: - Asbestos related - Deafness - Vibration White Finger - Stress - Hazardous exposure  Fatality

8. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Facts and Figures  In 2003/04  236 fatal accidents  over 30,000 major  130,000 injuries causing an absence of more than 3 days absence from work.  2004/05- 220 fatal accidents

9. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Working at Height Regulations  In force 6 April 2005  Duty to ensure:  all work at height properly planned and organised  those involved competent  risks from work at height are assessed  appropriate work equipment  risks from fragile surfaces properly controlled  equipment inspected and maintained.

10. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Counting the Cost  Direct Costs  39 Million days lost due to accidents and workplace related illness every year,  9.9 million days are lost as a result of work relating to manual handling processes.  Personal Injury Claims  Fines

11. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Cost of Personal Injury Claim  Damages  Costs – Conditional Fee Agreements  Fixed fees – Employers Liability (accident 1/10/04)  Fixed fees – Disease claims (claim after October 2004)  Lost time to investigate, give witness statements, attend trial

12. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Fines  86% conviction rate (03/04)  average fine  Magistrates £7,000  Crown Court £18,000

13. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Indirect Costs  Claims culture  HSE prosecutions - criminal record  Business Reputation  Loss of loyalty / morale

14. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Enforcement Website  www.hse-databases.co.uk/prosecutions/  Records for 5 years  Trade Publicity  Wider Publicity – local and national

15. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Proactive  Health and Safety standards  Records, records, records  Board Level commitment - personal liability  Relationship with HSE  Risk-based approach  Records, records, records!

16. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Records, Records, Records  Civil Procedure Rules  Straight denial – not any more  Pre-action Disclosure Applications – money for old rope Drafting -  “Alleges”  Who said what?To who?When?

17. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Reactive  Pastoral  Contemporaneous Investigation  Remedy faults  Co-worker care  Co-operation with authorities  Rehabilitation  Back to work assessment

18. Beachcroft Wansbroughs RECORDS, RECORDS, RECORDS! Always turn up at trial Cannot be cross-examined Don’t change their story over time

19. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Corporate Manslaughter  Guilty of Corporate manslaughter if: The way in which the organisations activities managed or organised by its senior managers :  (a) caused a death and  (b) amounts to a gross breach of duty  Unlimited fine

20. Beachcroft Wansbroughs Relationship with HSE  Lasts longer than the PACE interview  www.corporateaccountability.org - enforcement policy www.corporateaccountability.org

21. Beachcroft Wansbroughs RECORDS, RECORDS, RECORDS