Tesco employee sues customer over injury caused by 'depressed driveway'

I've just been reading an article in the Daily Mail about a Tesco customer who is being sued by a delivery driver of the supermarket giant.

Apparently, the employee, Andrew Britton, had 'gone over on his ankle' on customer Paul Singleton's drive while unloading his shopping.

Britton assured Singleton he was fine, yet three months later the estate agent received a letter from Mr Britton's lawyer stating he "inverted his ankle" when he stepped out of the van near the gate.

It continued: "The reason why we are alleging fault is that you failed to maintain the driveway and caused or permitted areas of the driveway immediately in front of the gate to sink and form a depression within the driveway into which our client has stepped and which has caused his injury."

To make matters worse, Tesco has refused to get involved or discuss the incident, claiming it was a "private matter", despite involving a member of its staff allegedly suffering an injury while on duty.

So, who is at fault here (if anyone)? Tell us what you think here.

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Got a question? Want to share your knowledge?

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Then you can, with our Q&A section on http://www.healthandsafetyprofessional.co.uk/

Recent questions added have been on subjects such as ethical PPE, DSE and posture, and servicing HGVs. Why not log on and use your health and safety knowledge to help your peers?

It's a great way to be part of the health and safety community.

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Another example of health and safety bureaucracy

Royal Mail, which recently stopped deliveries to a village called Booze, North Yorkshire, due to health and safety concerns, has announced it will restore the service after Booze council agreed to carry out road improvements so postal workers could avoid back injuries, much to the joy of its residents.

Royal Mail had abandoned deliveries there after concerns over the state of the country lane, which health and safety inspectors said posed an "unacceptable" risk.

Yet another unsavoury story ... Isn't it time to stop condemning the profession and let us get on with the job of saving lives? Have a rant in our forums.
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RSS: How you can be kept up to date with the latest HSP articles

Do you want to be alerted when a new article or news story is added to www.healthandsafetyprofessional.co.uk? Our RSS feeds will make our content much more accessible.

Basically, if you download a feed from the site, the headlines will appear on your own computer screen - so instead of you having to go to the website to find new information, that information is sent to you.

Download our RSS feed

Instructions on how to use the feed

If you have any questions, email me.

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A waste of money?

The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) has just published a report which states low-risk businesses are basically wasting their money bringing in consultants.

BERR says low-risk businesses could save £140 million a year if 20% sought basic health and safety advice from the HSE and other government sources rather than buying in consultancy.

According to the report, the average company spends 20 hours a year on administration to comply with health and safety regulations, costing more than £350. Do you think it's too much? Tell us in our opinion poll.

Lastly, do you believe low-risk firms are wasting money? Or are you a consultant? What do you have to say about the report? Discuss here.

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Hairy workers sent home

Contractors working on an asbestos removal project were forbidden from continuing work as they were not clean-shaven, according to reports.

The workers were required to wear protective gear, including mouth masks. However, managers said a satisfactory respiratory seal could not be achieved unless the worker is clean shaven.

Do you think this is just another negative story to hit the headlines, or do the managers have a point? Share your views in the discussion forum.

Decorator fined for "smoking in his workplace"

Some interesting comments have been added to our story on the decorator who was fined for smoking in his van. Check out what your peers have to say about it here.

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Introducing Twitter to HSP

I have just created a Twitter account for users of http://www.healthandsafetyprofessional.co.uk/ to follow any updates made to the site.

Simply visit www.twitter.com/healthandsafety and add the page as a favourite. You can create your own account, and when we add a new piece of content or an important prosecution is reported on, you'll get an update to your mobile phone.

How cool is that?

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Something to make you chuckle...

I was just sent this image and thought I'd share it with you ... it made me chuckle anyway.

IIRSM teleconference

This Friday we will be holding our second teleconference - giving IIRSM members the chance to discuss hot topics in industry.

The Government published a report today, detailing the progress made so far on preparing for the extension of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act to cover deaths in custody. So that's certainly one subject we'll be discussing.

The teleconference will be posted in the discussion forums on www.healthandsafetyprofessional.co.uk, so make sure you visit the forums next week to see how the debate went.