An industry manufacturer has been fined after a maintenance worker was killed when he fell through a factory roof skylight in Somerset.

Cooper B-Line (CBL) Limited, of Walrow Industrial Estate, Highbridge, Somerset, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. It was fined £210,000 with over £36,493 in costs.

Taunton Crown Court heard how 46-year-old Samuel Wright Maxwell was working for CBL factory in Highbridge.

As a maintenance worker, Mr Maxwell had permission to go onto the buildings roofs for various tasks. The roofs at CBL were extensive and people worked on them regularly, without proper precautions to prevent them falling.

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While working on a roof on 17 May 2013, colleagues heard a crash and discovered Mr Maxwell had fallen through a skylight onto the concrete floor of a rack assembly area seven metres below. He died shortly after the fall.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) that CBL management failed to appreciate the risks to their maintenance workers when working on the roofs. They had carried out an inadequate generic risk assessment, which failed to identify the risks and control measures necessary when its employees were working at height.

HSE Inspector Annette Walker said: "The senior management of companies must learn from this tragic case that they need to take the health and safety of their workers seriously. In this case a confusing system of work had developed and unintentionally encouraged dangerous methods.

"Falls from height continue to account for a significant proportion of all workplace deaths and serious injuries. Falls through fragile roofs and skylights sadly happen all too often. Businesses should ensure that all roof work including routine maintenance is properly planned and carried out safely."

(LM/MH)