Why you shouldn’t operate a hand pallet truck until you’ve read on…
Hand pallet trucks: they’re well… handy. But all too often we put them into a situation that doesn’t suit them – an uneven floor… a gradient… a longish distance to travel…
Sounds like the real world? That’s the problem. These everyday ‘difficulties’ for hand pallet trucks mean that you could be taking a big risk…
An expensive court case, a fine, compensation – could you handle it? Could your business handle it?
Perhaps it’s time to make sure you comply with HSE legislation…
With the height of the handling season fast approaching, employers are urged to pay special attention this year to their manual hand pallet trucks. A third of all workplace injuries are of the type caused by their incorrect use, while worker claims for compensation are on the increase in UK courts.
A recent, independent study commissioned by Mitsubishi measured the pulling forces on 17 popular models. Shockingly, most failed to approach UK regulations on lighter loads. Worse yet, not one of the models tested met current UK legislation for a moving a heavier load at all.
Where a worker has to exert an unsafe force effort to undertake a task, it’s the duty of the employer to ensure that the worker either moves smaller loads or uses motorised equipment such as a powered pallet truck.
If you aren’t sure whether you are working within the law, it makes sense to call in a reputable supplier to conduct a survey. In the meantime you could take this simple self-assessment. Just CLICK HERE!
Legal consequences aside, according to the Health and Safety Executive, more than one third of all injuries requiring at least three days off from work are caused by manual handling (lifting, lowering, pushing, pulling or carrying). On average, each sufferer took 20 days off in a 12-month period. Not only a significant injury for the worker but also a hindrance to effective operations.
Handling injuries at work comes in many forms, but by far the most common is back strain from using the wrong equipment. That’s why the law in the UK insists that employees are protected by providing the correct equipment for the task. In most cases, using a power pallet truck instead of a hand pallet truck is the simple and inexpensive solution.
To find out more – including a special offer on our award-winning power pallet trucks, click here.
