Court Case Result - Criminal Sentence
- Country
- England & Wales
- Hearing Date
- 27 November 2018
- Court Location
- Birmingham Crown Court
- Judge
- Judge Paul Farrer QC
- Case Number
- S20170804
- Name
- Data Anonymised
Offence/s
- Offence
- Duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees.
- Order
- Details:
- Sentence notes
- Failing to discharge the employer's general duty, owed under section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons not in his employment, who may be affected are not thereby exposed to risks to their health or safety
- Sentence notes
- Fine: £2,335,000
Costs: £7,214
Failing to discharge the employer's general duty, owed under section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, to ensure so far as reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees
Sentencing Considerations
- Victim Personal Statement
- Yes
Sentencing Details
- Sentenced Upon
- Guilty Plea
- Distinguishing Features / Details
- The company pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the safety of employees and failing to prevent or control risks of driver error due to lack of capability and/or fatigue and/or working hours (which were excessive in the circumstances) in Coventry, West Midlands, between April 2015 and October 2015. The company had behaved irresponsibly when it permitted a 77-year-old employee to continue driving despite warnings about his competence. He had a history of collisions (he had crashed four times in the previous three years), complaints from the public and specific warnings from a driving school instructor. A 7-year-old boy, on the front of the top deck of the bus, and a 76-year-old pedestrian, who was hit by the bus, died when the driver mistook the accelerator for the brake and crashed into a Sainsbury's supermarket on 3 October 2015. The bus driver, who was not mentally fit to stand trial, was found to have caused the two deaths and serious injury to two other passengers by driving dangerously. He was given a two-year supervision order.
The judge said: "The failings of the company were a significant cause of the events of October 3 2015." - Case Timeline
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- Crime Location
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Legal Teams & Authorities
- Chambers
- St Philips Chambers
- Barrister
- Richard Paul Atkins KC
- Authority
- Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
- Chambers
- Lincoln House Chambers
- Barrister
- Andrew Martin Thomas KC
Defence Team
Prosecuting Team
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