Fining a 'Very large' company

摘要

In this legal casenote1, we look at the sentencing remarks of District Judge Joanna Dickens when imposing a fine of ￡1.2 million on Dyson Technologies after a heavy milling machine toppled over and struck an employee while it was being moved (HSB 512 p.4). The employee, Barry Miles, escaped with relatively minor injuries but could, but for chance, have been killed. Giving judgment at Swindon Magistrates' Court on 3 August, District Judge Dickens noted that Dyson Technologies is a global technology company based at Tetbury Hill, Malmesbury, where it designs and manufactures electrical domestic appliances. The company has a rapid prototyping department, which researches and develops new technologies, product designs and manufacturing capabilities. The department has several engineering workshops containing milling machines and lathes. The company has a workshop support team, supervised by Keith Cambridge, which carries out functions including the movement of machinery. Dyson Technologies also has a central health and safety department that provides advice to the departments, although responsibility for health and safety remains within each individual department.