A self-employed roofer has received a suspended prison sentence after a man suffered serious injuries after falling from a scaffold in Devon.
Iain Smith fell from a height of more than 25 feet while working for Daniel Hooper, trading as Hooper Roofing, on 13 June 2023.
Hooper, of Brook Road in Cullompton, Devon, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 following a prosecution by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), according to a statement from the safety regulator.
He was sentenced to 16 weeks imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, at Exeter Magistrates Court on 6 February.
Hooper was also ordered pay £10,875 in costs and to complete 150 hours of unpaid work in the community.
Smith had been manually carrying old roof slates down a ladder attached to the scaffold platform at a domestic property in Honiton when he fell, the HSE reported last week.
The 36-year-old suffered “serious injury, including five broken vertebrae, as well as skull and rib fractures”, the HSE added.
Smith was airlifted to hospital where he was put into an induced coma for five days.
“He has since made a remarkable recovery but does still suffer from the effects of his injuries,” the HSE said.
Its investigators found that Hooper had “failed to ensure the health, safety and welfare of his employee as he did not undertake any planning or appropriately supervise the work at height or supply suitable equipment to do the task safely”.
The HSE investigation also found that ladders were used to transfer heavy slate tiles to and from the scaffolding platform and “this practice was not, so far as reasonably practicable, safe”.
It noted there are alternative methods of transferring slate tiles to and from a scaffolding platform that eliminate the need for ladders to be used.
“These include the use of a pulley system or use of a mechanical conveyor,” the HSE said.
HSE inspector Thomas Preston said: “Falls from height account for around half of all deaths in the construction industry and Mr Smith is very fortunate to still be alive today.
“The risks of working at height and the control measures are well established, including the need to supervise the work appropriately. Alternative methods of moving materials up and down from a scaffold platform… must be considered when planning roofing projects.”
HSE annual data for the year to 31 March 2024 showed that a fall from height was the most common cause of workplace fatalities, accounting for 50 out of 138.
