A company has been prosecuted for allowing employees to carry out work at unsafe heights in Cardiff.

Survey Roofing Group Ltd of Kingfisher House, Billericay, Essex, has been fined £36,666 with over £28,856 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching Section 6(3) and 10(2) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.

Cardiff Magistrates' Court heard how a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspector witnessed two workers carrying out repairs on a 12.5-metre 5m high pitched roof at a Homebase store in Llanishen in August 2015.

The two employees were working on a roof which had unprotected potentially fragile roof lights, without sufficient control measures in place.

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A HSE investigation found the work created a risk of injury to employees from falling from or through the roof, and to members of the public from falling objects. In addition, the investigation found suitable and sufficient measures had not been taken to protect employees, such as completing the work from the basket of a mobile elevated work platform and that members of the public had not been protected from falling objects, by closing the store or cordoning off below the work area.

Survey Roofing Group and the Survey Roofing Group companies, which share many of the same directors, have received previous advice and enforcement from HSE regarding unsafe work at height.

HSE inspector Paul Newton said: "Falls from height remain one of the most common causes of work-related fatalities in this country and the risks associated with working at height are well known. All work at height should be properly planned, including short-term reactive work, so workers and members of the public are not put at risk.

"Commercial clients and companies should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards."

(LM/MH)