Farm XS (Northern) Limited, based in Barnard Castle, was sentenced after an incident on 29th January 2024 that left the 24-year-old with serious injuries.
The employee was only in his second week of employment at the Staindrop Road site when he was struck from behind by an excavator and run over. He suffered fractures to both feet.
An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) found that the company had failed to ensure a safe system of work was in place. The 24-year-old was working on a waste pile near moving vehicles with no physical separation between them. There was no risk assessment or system of work to protect pedestrians from vehicle movements.
The case against Farm XS (Northern) Limited, Shaw Bank, Staindrop Road, Barnard Castle, County Durham, DL12 8TD, was heard at Teesside Magistrates鈥� Court on Tuesday 5th August 2025. The company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. It was fined 拢4,000 and ordered to pay 拢4,285 in costs.
HSE inspector Richard McMullen said after the hearing: 鈥淭he outcome could have been much worse. But the failures that day meant a worker received serious injuries.
鈥淭his incident was easily avoidable by implementing control measures and safe practices to ensure that workers were not put at risk from moving vehicles, including clear segregation and safe refuges.
鈥淭his should be a reminder to the waste industry of the need to consider workplace transport risks and to introduce appropriate control measures to separate vehicles and pedestrians.鈥�
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