The respondent in this matter and some colleagues had been moving some very large and heavy machinery inside a factory when the respondent sustained an injury to his back. The machines were moved manually on skates, with one man at the front steering, two more at the back pushing, and one acting as look-out. The respondent was one of the men at the back pushing and argued that in doing so he had injured himself. The movement of heavy machinery was outside the course of the usual duties performed by the respondent and it was agreed that the force required to move the machines exceeded Health and Safety Guidelines. At first instance, the judge held that a risk assessment should have taken place and because it had not, the employers, Gravatom Engineering Systems had been in breach of their duty under Regulation 4 of the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992. Under these Regulations, where reasonably practicable, employers should avoid the need for employees to undertake manual handling operations at work. Where the undertaking of such operations is unavoidable, a risk assessment should be made and steps be taken to reduce the risk of injury to the ‘lowest level reasonably practicable.’ In this particular case, the judge held that had a detailed risk assessment been carried out, it would have identified a considerable danger of serious injury to the operatives pushing the machines.
On appeal, the appellant submitted that the method of moving the machines was a standard one, that no one had previously suffered any injury, and that it was arguable that even without a risk assessment the appellant had taken all appropriate steps to reduce the risk of injury to the lowest level possible.
The appeal was dismissed. The judge held that although the appellant typically used this manoeuvre to move machinery, it was clear from Schedule 1 to the 1992 Regulations that the degree of risk involved would vary depending on a number of factors. There were a number of ways in which the appellant could have used to reduce the risk to the lowest level possible, including using a forklift truck, employing specialist contractors or using more personnel. Had such measures been taken to reduce the risk as much as possible, there would not have been a breach of the Regulations.
As a result, in a Claim For Breach Of Statutory Duty Involving Manual Handling Operations, if the defendant has taken appropriate steps to reduce the risk of injury to the respondent, the fact that there had been a failure to carry out a proper risk assessment might not on its own be enough to constitute a breach of statutory duty. It appears that this is not restricted to claims under this particular legislation (the Manual Handling Operations Regulations).