What happened
One of Britain's leading steel galvanizers has been fined more than £500,000 after a worker suffered catastrophic injuries at its site in Devon. According to the HSE Media Centre, a lifting chain carrying a roller steel joist weighing nearly three tonnes failed on 12 October 2021 at Wedge Group Galvanizing Limited's Crediton site.
The beam fell into a galvanizing bath, and the resulting wave of molten zinc covered a 33-year-old worker before hitting a wall and surging back towards him. He suffered 40 per cent burns, spent 11 days in intensive care and underwent 13 separate operations. During treatment he developed infection and sepsis, leaving him with multiple long-term health conditions.
The HSE investigation found the set of chains used to lift the beam showed signs of damage and deterioration, and there was a failure to withdraw them. Crucially, the chains had not undergone their mandatory regular inspection. The load slinging arrangement was also incorrect, meaning the load being lifted exceeded the safe limit for the chains. The risk assessment in place for "immersion & swilling" had no reference to checks on chains or what sling configuration to use.
Wedge Group Galvanizing Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £566,666 and ordered to pay £15,521 in costs at Bristol Magistrates Court on 14 October 2026.
HSE inspector Alexander Ashen described it as a "wholly-avoidable incident" and said it was "shocking that an industry-leading firm, with considerable resources at its disposal, should risk the lives of its workers with substandard inspection protocols."
Why it matters to contractors
This wasn't an exotic failure. It was a worn lifting accessory that stayed in service, the wrong sling configuration, and a risk assessment that said nothing about either. Every one of those is a failing that turns up on ordinary construction sites — not just in heavy industry.
Under LOLER 1998, lifting accessories must be thoroughly examined by a competent person at least every six months. But as the HSE notes, chain slings used in aggressive environments can need checking before each day's use, in line with manufacturer instructions and industry codes of practice. The six-monthly thorough examination is the floor, not the ceiling — your pre-use checks and your rated capacity calculations do the day-to-day heavy lifting.
The other quiet killer here is the risk assessment. If your assessment for a lifting task doesn't tell the operative which sling configuration to use and what to check before the lift, it isn't suitable and sufficient. Generic paperwork that doesn't match the actual task on the ground is exactly what the HSE pulls apart after an incident.
What to check on your site
- Thorough examination dates. Every lifting accessory — chains, slings, shackles, eyebolts — thoroughly examined within the last six months, with the report on file.
- Pre-use inspection. A daily visual check before each lift, especially in corrosive or acidic environments. Damaged or deteriorated kit withdrawn immediately and quarantined.
- Rated capacity vs sling angle. Confirm the load is within the safe working limit for the chosen sling configuration — remember angles reduce capacity.
- A statutory inspection register. A single place recording what was examined, by whom and when.
- Task-specific risk assessment. Does it name the lifting equipment, the sling arrangement and the pre-use checks? If not, it needs rewriting.
- Competence. The person inspecting and the person slinging the load both need to know what they're doing.
Which SafetyPod documents help
If your lifting paperwork is thin, start with a proper task-specific assessment. The Risk Assessments library covers the common lifting and plant activities, and the Inspections & Checklists section gives you pre-start and periodic checks for plant and equipment. To keep a running record of thorough examinations, the Registers templates include statutory inspection registers. And if the worst happens, a RIDDOR-ready form from the Investigation category helps you record it properly.
These templates give you a solid, editable starting point — they don't make anyone compliant on their own. The controls still have to be real on site: the inspections done, the kit withdrawn when it's worn, the right sling used every time.
Bottom line
A young man endured 40 per cent burns because a worn chain stayed in service. The fix cost nothing compared to £566,666 and a life changed forever. Check your lifting accessories, write your lifting assessments properly, and keep the records. Browse the full library and sort your lifting paperwork today.