This story was first published in digitalhealth.net
Health and Safety fines reach £61 million
New research conducted by law firm BLM has indicated that the amount UK firms paid out in health and safety fines rose sharply last year following the introduction of tougher rules.
The law firm cited that there were 292 fines issued during the year, with more than £61 million paid out in total - a 148 per cent rise since 2015.
The average cost of a health and safety related fine rose from £69,500 to £211,000.
Helen Devery, BLM partner, maintained that strong safety processes were vital for businesses ‘big or small’.
The firm attributed the rise to new legislation on health and safety, food hygiene and corporate manslaughter offences introduced in February 2016. The rules impose fines proportionate to the size of a business, rather than using a universal figure for all offences.
Penalties are judged using metrics which evaluate the seriousness of an offence and likelihood of harm in cases of ‘near misses’. BLM said fines for businesses with a turnover more than £50 million could now be as high as £10 million for health and safety offences, and £20 million for corporate manslaughter.
It also highlighted that more than 18 fines topped £1 million last year, compared with just two in 2015.
The highest fines included a £5 million fine issued to Merlin Entertainments following the Smiler rollercoaster accident at Alton Towers that injured 16 riders, some seriously.
BLM said that as a sector construction had paid the most in fines, followed by manufacturing, leisure, logistics and transport, industrials and the public sector.
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