Prosecutions

The shopfitters was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) following the incident at its factory in the town on 15 April 2010.

An employee was trimming oak planks when a piece of wood caught on the blade of the circular saw, pulling his index finger into the machine. The employee was taken to hospital and his finger was amputated at the knuckle the following day.

North Sefton Magistrates' Court in Southport was told the guard for the saw was resting on a table at the side of the machine when the worker's finger was severed.

The HSE investigation found the company had carried out a risk assessment for the saw but this had not been passed on to its employees. The injured worker had never been given any training by the company on using the saw, and no warning signs were on the machine.

The shopfitters pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 8(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 by failing to provide adequate instructions for using the saw. It was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay £3,498 in prosecution costs on 14 June 2011.

Speaking after the hearing, the investigating inspector at HSE said:

"These kinds of incidents are all too common in the manufacturing industry and sadly result in workers suffering life-long injuries.

"Good health and safety isn't about filling in forms. It was pointless for the company to carry out a risk assessment if they weren't going to pass it on to their staff.

"No instructions or training were provided to the victim on how to use the saw safely, and supervision in the workshop appeared to be minimal. If the shopfitting company had done more to protect the safety of its employees then one of them wouldn't have lost a finger."