Company fined more than £100,000 after man falls 10 metres through barn roof in Southampton

A company has been fined more than £100,000 after a man was seriously injured when he fell through a barn roof in Southampton.

The 37-year-old from Bursledon had been helping his friend repair a fire-damaged storage barn at Dodwell Farm Limited on Pylands Lane in February last year, when he fell around 10 metres below.

He had been at the top of a sloped roof fixing new panels to timbers, but the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) say they were not strong enough to hold his weight. The roof gave way when he stood on them and he fell through.

The injuries he suffered were severe and he spent an extended period in hospital.

An investigation by HSE found that safety measures such as barriers, netting or access equipment were not in place.

The findings found Dodwell Farm Limited had failed to take appropriate precautions to ensure the safety of workers, and others affected by the work, when replacing the barn roof.

The company pleaded guilty to breaching a Health and Safety Act and was fined £133,000 on Friday 3 January 2025.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Nicola Pinckney said: "Too many workers are injured and killed every year as a result of falling from height.

"The sentence imposed on Dodwell Farm Limited should underline to everyone who carries out work at height that the courts, and HSE, take a failure to follow the regulations extremely seriously.

"Measures to prevent the accident, such as avoiding working from the roof, protecting fragile surfaces and having netting in place, are well known and readily available.

"HSE will not hesitate to take action against companies which do not do all that they should to keep people safe."

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