Corporate manslaughter and_corporate_homicide_act_2007

John Johnston

www.healthandsafetytips.co.uk

Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007

www.healthandsafetytips.co.uk There is no such thing as a 'stupid' or 'daft' health and safety question!

Health and Safety Law • Health and safety law states that organisations must:• provide a written health and safety policy (if they employ

five or more people);• assess risks to employees, customers, partners and any

other people who could be affected by their activities;• arrange for the effective planning, organisation, control,

monitoring and review of preventive and protective measures;

• ensure they have access to competent health and safety advice;

• consult employees about their risks at work and current preventive and protective measures.


• Individual prosecutions currently in force under The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA)

– S.37 HSWA for Directors/Managers, S.7 HSWA for Employees. – Possible prison sentence for individuals on some H&S offences.

• Health and Safety (Offences) Act 2008 - in force Jan 2009• Current maxima:

– £5k or £20k for summary offence in lower courts, depending on offence; unlimited fine for indictable offence;

– imprisonment not available for most offences (but up to 6 months in magistrates court / 2 years in Crown Court for few offences e.g, failing to comply with a prohibition notice or breaching a licensing requirement).

• New maxima:– £20k fines in lower courts for nearly all summary offences, unlimited fines in higher courts. – Imprisonment for nearly all offences – up to 12 months in Magistrates Courts and 2 years in

the Crown Court.

Health and Safety Law


• Introduces new manslaughter offence for organisations.

• In force since 6 April 2008.

• The offence –

– “Section 1(1): an organisation to which this section applies is guilty of an offence if the way in which its activities are managed or organised –

– (a) causes a person’s death, and

– (b) amounts to a gross breach of a relevant duty of care owed by the organisation to the deceased.”

Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007


What are the Penalties?

• Unlimited fine• Publicity order• Remedial order• Fines are expected to be:

– 5 to 10% of turnover (Transco £15m = less than 1% of turnover).– 2.5% of turnover for offences that come under the HSWA.– Possible equity fines.

• Individual prosecutions will still remain under the HSWA – S.37 HSWA for Directors/Managers, S.7 HSWA for Employees.– Possible prison sentence for individuals.


Case Study 1 - Reliance Scrap Metal Merchants• A Dorset scrap-metal company was fined and its director imprisoned

following the death of an employee after a gas cylinder exploded – the circumstances of which the director tried to cover up.

• The scrap-metal company was found guilty of various breaches of the HSWA and was fined £60,000.

• Director, David Matthews changed his plea in the witness box from not guilty to guilty in relation to breaching two counts of:

– S.37 of HSWA, with respect to the failure to discharge a duty of the HSWA.

• Matthews was fined £1,000 and sent to prison for three years for perverting the course of justice by trying to cover up the circumstances of the incident.

• Costs will be determined at a hearing on 20 October 2008 at Winchester Crown Court, in which the fine awarded against the company may be reduced.


Case Study 2 – Tebay Rail Incident

• On Sunday 15 February 2004 a runaway engineering trailer struck a group of railway workers on the West Coast Main Line at Tebay in Cumbria. Four men were killed and three others were injured.

• On 17 March 2006 Mr Roy Kennett was found guilty of four counts of manslaughter and a charge under section 7 of the HSWA.

• Mr Mark Connelly was found guilty of four counts of manslaughter and three HSWA charges.

• Mr Kennett received a two-year custodial sentence, and Mr Connelly received a nine-year custodial sentence.


Options for HSfB?INDG417

OR

HSfB found guiltyH&S firm first to becharged under corporate killing legislation.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg417.pdf


HSfB GUILTYHSfB GUILTYHSfB GUILTY

Corporate manslaughter and_corporate_homicide_act_2007

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