The incident happened on 10 October 2022 on a construction site in Ince. The driver had been reversing the one-tonne truck when it entered an unprotected excavation and overturned.

The man, 27 at the time, was thrown from the vehicle as he was not wearing a seatbelt. He sustained crushing injuries to his leg, resulting in a broken foot and ankle.

An HSE investigation found the man had not been wearing a seatbelt – despite HSE guidance and the dumper truck’s manufacturer’s instructions to do so.

Investigators discovered Jim Yates Limited had instructed workers not to wear seat belts while operating one-tonne dumper trucks. Instead, operators routinely fastened the seat belt behind them before sitting on top of it. This disabled the vehicle’s seat belt warning system and gave the false impression that the restraint was being worn correctly.

The investigation also found that open excavations on the site were not adequately protected to prevent vehicles from entering them.

HSE guidance highlights that one-tonne dumper trucks are particularly vulnerable to overturning. Employers should ensure excavations are suitably protected to prevent vehicle access and operators should always wear seat belts so they remain within the protection provided by the vehicle’s rollover protection structure if an overturn occurs.

Jim Yates & Sons Limited of Risley, pleaded guilty to safety breaches and was fined £20,000 and ordered to pay £4,824 in costs at Warrington Magistrates’ Court.

HSE Inspector Seve Gomez-Aspron MBE said: “Incidents involving workplace transport continue to cause death and life-changing injuries every year, and overturning remains one of the biggest risks when using dumper trucks.

“This incident was entirely foreseeable and could have been prevented. Suitable protection should have been in place to stop vehicles entering the excavation, and operators should never be instructed not to wear a seat belt.

“Seat belts are a vital safety feature. They keep operators inside the protective zone created by the vehicle’s rollover protection structure if a dumper overturns, significantly reducing the risk of serious injury or death.

“Had suitable edge protection also been installed around the excavation and the operator been wearing the seat belt, these serious injuries could have been avoided.”