CHARLIE O’DOWD suffered multiple fractures to his foot and longer-term nerve damage in the incident, which was captured on CCTV at the company’s Long Royd warehouse on 14 November 2024.

He had been using an unguarded ride-on pallet truck while new automated machinery was being installed in the warehouse. To accommodate the installation, the company had changed its workplace transport routes, meaning pallet trucks and forklifts had to share the same routes within a busy stock loading area where visibility was limited and vehicle movements had increased.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the company had focused on installing the new machinery but failed to adequately consider how the changes to transport arrangements would affect worker safety. The new vehicle routes had not been properly risk assessed before being introduced.

Leggett & Platt Components Europe pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 at Leeds Magistrates’ Court on 20 October 2026. As well as the fine, it was ordered to pay full costs of £3,374.

HSE inspector Chris Parker said: “This case highlights the importance of carefully assessing the wider safety implications of any changes made within a workplace, even where those changes may be temporary.

“When workplace transport routes are altered, employers must ensure that the risks created by those changes are properly assessed and controlled before they are introduced. Had suitable planning and risk assessment been carried out, this incident could have been prevented.”

You can see the CCTV footage here.