A roofing company from Cambridgeshire were fined last year for health and safety failings that exposed three of their workers to a potentially fatal situation.

The company had be awarded work to carry out roof repairs at the premises of Cottage Linen Limited in Hertfordshire but the work was halted by the client’s site manager after the HSE raised concerns on the practice of unsafe work.

In January 2015 the HSE ruled that the workers were allowed to work on a fragile roof without any safety measures or controls in place, no plans and no supervision. The equipment worn did nothing to reduce the risks imposed on the workers and the risk and method statement did not reflect the situation the men would be working in.

Kerry Parmenter pleaded guilty to breaching safety regulations and was fined £2500 as well as being ordered to pay £1459 of costs. He was found guilty of breaching regulation 13 of the Construction Regulations 2007 and regulation 9 of the Work at Height Act Regulation 2005.

Ensure that you are not putting your contractors or employees at risk. Consult with Heightsafe Systems for advise and best practice on working at height in any condition. Call +44 (0)20 3819 7199.