Skip Hire Company and Director fined for safety breaches

8th February 2012

Fines totalling €20,000 were handed down to Derry White Skip Hire Ltd and one of its Directors, Mr. Derry White, yesterday (Tuesday 7th February) by Judge Carl Moran in the Limerick Circuit Court. This case arose as the result of an accident at the waste recycling plant operated by the above defendants at Mountplummer, Broadford, Co Limerick. 

On 23rd June 2009, Jason Dunleavy, an employee of Derry White Skip Hire Ltd suffered a full amputation of his left arm due to contact with dangerous moving parts of a conveyor.

On January 11th 2010 at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court the defendants pleaded guilty to charges arising from the accident investigation carried out by the Health and Safety Authority.

After the judgement, Brian Higgisson, Assistant Chief Executive of the Health and Safety Authority said that safety standards in the Waste Management Sector are a cause for concern, “Over the last number of years fatal and serious accidents have been a persistent cause for concern in this sector. This year we have initiated a programme of inspections specifically targeting the waste management sector designed to improve safety standards and reduce accidents.”

The Company, Derry White Skip Hire Ltd, was fined €15,000 for breaches to Section 8(1) as related to section 8(2)(c)(iii) contrary to section 77(9)(a) of the Safety Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.

Mr. Derry White, a Director of Derry White Skip Hire Ltd, was fined €5,000 for breaches to Section 8(1) as related to section 8(2)(c)(iii) contrary to section 77(9)(a) and section 80 of the Safety Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.

The remainder of the charges were taken into account.