11 August 2004 - Health and Safety Executive Call For Reduction In Motor Vehicle Repair Industry
Figures,
published by the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) within the Health and
Safety Executive (HSE) and local authority sectors, have shown increases for
2003/04, involving fatal accidents during Motor Vehicle Repair (MVR)
activities.
During this period, it was reported, that 8 deaths occurred, with a further
6 deaths having occurred so far within the current reporting year, all as a
result of MVR activities.
The eight fatalities in the 2003/04 were as follows:
-
three fatal incidents caused by workers being struck by a moving vehicle because the handbrake had been left off
-
a mechanic who died when another vehicle travelling along the motorway struck the vehicle he was working on
-
three employees who were crushed to death while working under vehicles, in one case at the roadside and in another when the vehicle fell off a raised two-post vehicle lift
-
one fatal fire resulting from the mishandling of petrol where an apprentice mechanic died after being engulfed in flames, and several vehicles on the garage forecourt were also destroyed.
John Powell, from HSE’s Manufacturing Sector and Chair of the MVR Health and Safety Forum commented:
“All of
these deaths were avoidable. Simple things such as leaving parked vehicles
with their handbrakes on or ensuring that vehicles were properly supported
before going underneath them could be enough to save a life. Precautions to
prevent almost all types of accidents in MVR are often simple and
inexpensive.
“Sadly, there have been a further six deaths in the first four months of
this year, three of them in separate fires or explosions to self-employed
workers and involving the ignition of petrol vapours.
“The death toll in the MVR industry is unacceptable. Everyone must work
harder to ensure that the appropriate measures are in place to prevent
further tragedies.
“The HSE and representatives from the industry have been working together to
publish best practice solutions. If businesses bookmark HSE’s MVR website as
one of their favourites they will be ‘just one click away from health and
safety advice’ to prevent accidents and ill health in the industry.”
Fatalities involving MVR activities in previous years were as follows:
-
1999/2000 - 4
-
2000/01 - 4
-
2001/02- 7
-
2002/03 - 5
Main causes of fatal injury from 1998 to 2003, were:
-
trapped by something collapsing/overturning - e.g. vehicles falling off jacks or jacks failing
-
struck by moving vehicle – e.g. by vehicles being driven in/out/around premises
-
struck by moving or falling objects - e.g. vehicles falling off inspection lifts, loads off fork lift trucks
-
fire/explosion – e.g. through mishandling of petrol
Health and Safety advise for the MVR sector can be found by clicking this link: Motor Vehicle Repair (MVR)
Article by Alexandra Johnston
