John Lewis plc is fined £1.2m after worker suffers serious injuries on Milton Keynes premises

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
A court has fined John Lewis PLC £1.2m after an agency worker suffered serious injuries at its warehouse in Magna Park.

The incident took place in February 2022 and resulted in the worker falling from steps over a conveyor belt. The small steps were without handrails, presenting a significant risk of slips, trips and falls, which was exacerbated by confined headspace.

The injured person, who was an agency worker, sustained a broken hip which required extensive surgery and resulted in long-term complications.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Following the accident, Milton Keynes City Council’s Environmental Health Team investigated and determined the steps at the warehouse were unsafe and were an obvious and imminent risk.

The incident happened at John Lewis warehouse in Magna Park, Milton KeynesThe incident happened at John Lewis warehouse in Magna Park, Milton Keynes
The incident happened at John Lewis warehouse in Magna Park, Milton Keynes

The council served a prohibition notice on John Lewis to immediately prevent the use of steps without handrails across operational conveyor belts in the warehouse.

Following a review of all the evidence gathered by the city council, a decision was made to proceed with prosecution against the company for the health and safety breaches which led to the injuries.

At Oxford Magistrates Court, John Lewis PLC submitted guilty pleas, admitting Health and Safety breaches under section 2, section 3 and section 33(1)(a) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 for failing to protect the health, safety and welfare of its employees and regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety Regulations 1999.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The court heard that the company had failed in several areas, including:

Failing to undertake a suitable and sufficient risk assessment for crossing conveyor belts

Not providing and maintaining a safe system of work for employees and agency workers

Not providing adequate information, instruction and training for staff

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

In sentencing last week, the Judge stated that “the nature of the manoeuvre he was required to take was inherently unsafe“ and that “the offence was a significant cause of the actual harm suffered”.

She ordered John Lewis PLC to pay a £1.2 million fine after granting a reduction following the company’s early guilty plea, remorse for the incident and compliance with the investigation. The company was ordered to pay full costs of £11,271 and a statutory surcharge of £190.

Cabinet Member for Regulatory Services, Cllr Mick Legg, said:“The result of this case and the significant fine imposed highlights why employers must make health and safety their number one priority. Failure to do so can lead to real harm with devastating consequences.

"Slips, trips and falls are a major cause of injury in workplaces and the onus is on businesses to ensure they provide safe working environments. There are lessons to be learnt from this case to prevent similar incidents in the future.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A John Lewis spokesperson said: “John Lewis has an excellent track record in health and safety standards and takes its responsibilities very seriously, and we are very sorry for the injuries sustained by our agency worker at Magna Park. Since this accident happened in 2022 we have worked with Milton Keynes County Council and removed temporary step-overs from our warehouses to avoid any recurrence.”

The judge accepted that John Lewis Partnership reported the incident and there was a high level of cooperation with the investigation.

It was also noted that John Lewis had gone beyond the minimum requirement to remedy the issue and reduce the likelihood of a recurrence.

News you can trust since 1981
Follow us
©National World Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.Cookie SettingsTerms and ConditionsPrivacy notice