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On 12 November 2025, Systagenix Wound Management Manufacturing Limited, trading as Scapa Healthcare Limited, was fined £600,000 and ordered to pay £15,000 in costs. HSE published its account on 17 November 2025.
Tony Snowden, 56, died on 21 September 2020 at the company’s Gargrave premises after a loaded pallet fell and trapped him. HSE reported that the load weighed 592kg. Three-legged pallets had been stacked at floor level without racking, although they were unsuitable for vertical stacking.
The investigation identified shortcomings in risk assessment, controls against falling pallets, training and supervision. A pallet-handling policy existed, but HSE found no evidence that Mr Snowden had been trained on it.
From written policy to effective control
This case illustrates the difference between having an instruction and demonstrating that it is understood and followed. A management-system audit can examine how storage arrangements are assessed, who checks working conditions and how concerns reach the people able to act.
Assess the actual storage arrangement
Assessments need to address the goods, handling equipment and storage conditions in use. Technical decisions about load stability and storage methods require competent assessment and appropriate equipment information. A generic statement that materials are stored safely provides little assurance on its own.
Verify competence and supervision
A training register should connect to the work people perform. Managers can check whether relevant workers understand the controls and whether supervision identifies departures from the agreed arrangements. Internal audits can then assess whether those checks are effective.
Keep the conclusions evidence-based
This article makes no claim about the company’s ISO 45001 certification status and does not suggest that certification would certainly have prevented the death.
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Sources: HSE’s Systagenix prosecution report; HSE guidance on ISO 45001.