Company fined £433k after machine fall which fractured dad-of-three's skull
The 39-year-old has been left with permanent double vision and is unable to drive.
A paper packaging manufacturer has been fined over £433,000 after a worker fractured his skull when a 4.5-ton machine fell on his head, leaving him with permanent health problems.
Matthew King, a 39-year-old dad of three children, was working at Multi Packaging Solutions UK Limited at its East Kilbride site on October 31 2023, and was part of a team tasked with moving a machine from a warehouse to a storage area.
The machine weighed approximately 4.5 tons and measured 1.56 by 4.15 metres, but had no lifting or anchoring points.
Mr King was working underneath the suspended machine to secure a wheel on its underside when it slid from the forks and struck him on the head.
He sustained a severe skull fracture, bruising to his head and nerve damage to the left side of his face.
He has also been left with permanent double vision, loss of peripheral vision, facial palsy and hearing loss.
He is no longer able to drive, has undergone multiple surgeries, and has had to receive mental health support since the accident.
A subsequent investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the workplace health and safety regulator, ruled that the operation to lift the machine had not been properly planned, and that “no safe system of work had been put in place”.
It said moving a machine of such size and weight was not a regular task at the site and there was “no established system of work” for it.
The company was fined £433,333 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £32,500 at Hamilton Sheriff Court on Tuesday.
HSE inspector, Ingrid Grueso, said: “This incident was entirely preventable.
“The company failed to properly plan the lifting operation or implement a safe system of work.
“Mr King has been left with life-changing injuries including permanent damage to his eyesight, hearing and facial movement.
“He has had to sell his car as he can no longer drive safely and now relies on his wife to transport him and their three children.
“Employers must ensure that lifting operations are properly planned by a competent person and carried out safely.
“This is especially important for non-routine tasks involving heavy or awkward loads.”
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