The plaintiff was injured when working for the defendants spraying glaze onto jars. A small foreign body was blown into her eye. She said that no eye protection had been suuplied as required by the regulations. Held: The plaintiff’s appeal succeeded: ‘this was an operation which, when one looks at it in the round, carried … Continue reading Gerrard v Staffordshire Potteries Ltd: CA 2 Nov 1994

The House considered what was meant by the term ‘process’ in the Act and the Regulations. The point of law certified was ‘Whether for the purposes of the Factories Act 1961 and Regulations thereunder ‘process’ carried on in a factory means a manufacturing process or other continuous and regular activity carried on as a normal … Continue reading Nurse v Morganite Crucible Ltd: HL 1989

Mr McEwan was a probationary fitter employed to maintain and repair buses. He slipped on the surface of a board which was wet and slippery because of a spillage of coolant fluid. Held: The defenders had failed to prove that it would have been reasonably practicable for them to prevent the breach of regulation 12(3).Lord … Continue reading McEwan v Lothian Buses Plc: OHCS 4 Apr 2006

The claimant sought damages for personal injuries arising from exposure to depleted uranium whilst working for the defendant. An earlier claim had been compromised. The defendant denied liabilty and relied also on the compromise. Held: The evidence from expert witnesses was conflicting, but there was no sufficient evidence of exposure of the claimant to depleted … Continue reading David v Honeywell Normalair-Garrett Ltd: QBD 2 Mar 2006

The plaintiff had been employed by the first defendant as a pipe fitter at two steel works occupied and operated by predecessors of the second defendant. He had worked two years at each of the sites erecting pipes, breaking into old pipes and knocking off old lagging between an inch and three inches in thickness; … Continue reading Banks v Woodhall Duckham and Others: CA 30 Nov 1955

The court was asked as to the liability of employers in the knitting industry for hearing losses suffered by employees before the 1989 Regulations came into effect. The claimant had worked in a factory between 1971 and 2001, sustaining noise induced hearing losses before 1989. The defendant companies now appealed against a finding of liability. … Continue reading Baker v Quantum Clothing Group Ltd and Others: SC 13 Apr 2011

Contact visiting plants supported asbestos claim The deceased had worked as a lorry driver regularly collecting pulverized fuel ash from a power station. On his visits he was at areas with asbestos dust. He came to die from mesothelioma. His widow now pursued his claim that the respondent had failed to comply with the 1931 … Continue reading McDonald v National Grid Electricity Transmission Plc: SC 22 Oct 2014