Firm fined just £3,750 after digger crushes woman to death in car

Published on Friday 11 April 2008 21:46

A HAULAGE firm was fined just £3,750 after a woman was killed when a car loader broke free from a lorry and smashed into the car she was in.

Christina Fraser, 24, was crushed by the 30-tonne mechanical loader, which broke free from inadequate restraining chains and slipped off the trailer of the lorry.

The tragedy prompted a judge to call for a review of training in the haulage industry. After hearing there was no compulsory training for HGV drivers in securing loads, Lord Brailsford said yesterday: "It seems to me that if such training had existed, then there is at least a possibility that the accident which occurred might not have taken place.

"I am very glad that the Health and Safety Executive are looking at this matter.

"I express publicly the hope that guidelines, regulations or whatever is considered appropriate will be forthcoming in early course, to try to reduce the possibility of an event such as this happening in the future."

Ms Fraser, a beauty consultant from the Highlands, was being driven home from work on the A9 in July 2006 when the accident happened.

A lorry had turned off the main road, at the Tomich junction near Invergordon, and as it began to climb a slight incline, the loader, a wheeled vehicle with a bucket attached at the front, came off the trailer and rolled 40 metres on to the carriageway and crushed the Nissan Almera she was in.

Ms Fraser, from Arabella, by Tain, died instantly. Her colleague, Julia Mackay, escaped with minor injuries but has required psychiatric help.

The dead woman's fianc, Garry Ross, chanced on the crash and recognised the car. He was sent to wait for news at the hospital in Inverness, but discovered that only the driver, Ms Mackay, had arrived there.

The lorry driver, Walter MacLennan, 64, of Maryburgh, near Dingwall, and his employer, Munro & Sons (Highland), a transport company based at Alness, Easter Ross, admitted health and safety breaches at the High Court in Edinburgh.

Lord Brailsford admonished MacLennan, who had a clean licence after 47 years of driving, and fined the firm 3,750.

The court heard that Mr Ross and Ms Fraser's parents had been devastated by her death, and felt "a sense of utter desolation".

Lord Bailsford said: "I would like to express my personal sympathy to them. I appreciate nothing I say can in any material sense alleviate the suffering they will undoubtedly have. I hope hearing a full explanation of the facts is of some benefit."

Gary Allan, QC, the advocate-depute, said Munro & Sons was interested in buying the loader from another firm, Umax, of Evanton, and intended to test it at a quarry. A Munro manager drove the loader on to a trailer and applied the parking brake. MacLennan fitted chains which had been supplied to him.

Mr Allan said that after the accident it was found that the parking brake was defective and had been for some time. The chains were "clearly inadequate to support the loader".

He added: "Expert opinion has been sought on the manner of securing the load. Remarkably, there does not appear to be any compulsory training for lorry drivers in this connection."