A renowned premium yacht maker has been hit with a hefty £600,000 fine following a workplace incident that left one of its workers with life-changing injuries. Mark Gillen, a 54-year-old employee with 26 years of service, sustained severe injuries, including 12 broken ribs and a severed right arm, when a staging platform weighing approximately one tonne toppled over and fell on top of him at the shipyard.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) launched an investigation into the incident and discovered that the platform had fallen due to one of the front wheels hitting a divot in the concrete surface. Gillen was part of a team working on a 72-foot vessel at the company’s Southyard site when the accident occurred on 9 November 2021.
Gillen’s wife, Sarah, expressed gratitude to the HSE for holding Princess Yachts accountable but acknowledged that no fine could truly reflect the pain and ongoing suffering her husband and their family had endured. She stated, “Our worlds were turned upside down the day Mark had the catastrophic crush accident, leaving him with life-changing injuries. We are incredibly lucky to still have him with us, but there is no denying that the road to recovery has been, and continues to be, extremely difficult and challenging.”
During the court proceedings at Plymouth Magistrates’ Court, HSE enforcement lawyer Andy Siddall explained that staging platforms were extensively used by the company to ensure safe work at heights. On the day of the incident, finished mouldings were being moved from the Southyard site to another location. As Gillen and two colleagues pushed the platform, one of the front wheels encountered a divot in the concrete, causing it to topple and crush him. Due to the severity of his injuries, Gillen had to be airlifted to the hospital.
Sarah Gillen disclosed that her husband had been a fit, healthy, strong, and determined individual before the incident, engaging in weight training, boxing, cycling, and golf. However, he now experiences constant chronic nerve pain that hinders his ability to partake in activities he once enjoyed, significantly impacting his overall health and well-being.
The HSE investigation revealed that the company had failed to assess the risks associated with manually moving staging platforms through the external yard. Had proper risk assessments been conducted, the uneven ground would have been identified as a hazard requiring control measures. The risks could have been mitigated by prohibiting manual movement of the platforms and utilising forklift trucks for external transportation.
Princess Yacht Limited pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety At Work Act 1974 and was fined £600,000, with an additional cost order of £9,146.
HSE inspector Paul Mannell echoed Sarah Gillen’s sentiments, emphasising that Mark Gillen’s survival was fortunate. He stated, “The company should have had measures in place to ensure that mobile staging was never pushed through the yard by hand. The failure to have in place a safe system of work resulted in a life-changing injury to a loyal employee who had worked for the company for 26 years.”
