A roofing firm from London have been prosecuted and fined and its Director given a suspended prison sentence for putting his workers lives at risk during a roof renovation at a property in Surrey.
Mr Jack Avanzo, director of Weather Master Roofing Ltd was prosecuted by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) was found guilty and sentenced at Brighton Magistrates Court after an extensive investigation found the companies workers were at risk of falling from height due to operating without scaffolding or any edge protection on the roof.
Workers were also observed using the lights on their mobile phones to carry out work once it turned dark.
On 28 February 2023 Weather Master roofing Ltd were served with an Improvement Notice by the HSE which required them to improve how they carried out their working practices including better supervision and how they pre-planned their work on a property.
Weather Master Roofing Ltd failed to comply with the notice and on December 2024 they pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Working at Height Regulations 2005 and were fined £4000 and ordered to pay £1,500 costs and a victim surcharge of £1,600.
Company Director Mr Avanzo of County Kerry in the Republic of Ireland was given a 6 month prison sentence suspended for 2 years , fined £1,500 and ordered to complete 120 hours of unpaid work.
HSE inspector Stephanie Hickford-Smith said: “Falls from height are still the single biggest cause of work-related deaths in Great Britain. The law is clear – suitable and sufficient measures must be taken to prevent, where reasonably practicable, any person falling a distance liable to cause personal injury. Support and practical guidance on how to comply with the law is publicly available, free of charge. There is no excuse for putting workers lives at risk.”
