The company responsible for the design and installation of a set of electric gates that crushed a young boy to death has been fined £80,000.
Faulkner Gates, of Romsey, Hampshire, pleaded guilty tobreaching health and safety laws and failing to carry out adequate riskassessments on the gates which crushed nine-year-old Jason Keet at the block offlats where they were in operation in Poole, Dorset in April 2006.
Jason had reached through the gates to press the buttonwhen they closed, crushing his head and upper body between the gates and theirsupporting brick column, Bournemouth Crown Court heard.
The company was fined £80,000 and ordered to pay costs of£40,000 after being found guilty of the fatal safety breaches in connectionwith the design and installation of the gates.
Speaking after the hearing, the prosecuting HSEinspector, Stephen Hanson-Hall, said: 'Had the company undertaken asuitable and sufficient risk assessment, and communicated its findings with theother companies involved in the design and installation of the gates, it isunlikely this tragedy would have happened.'
