Company fined following Roger Jary's death

 

Mr Jary, 79, died after falling through a carport roof last year, stunning the town which lost an ardent volunteer and charity worker.

 

And this week, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said estate agent Morris Marshall and Poole (MMP) had admitted health and safety breaches and was fined £75,000, and the company said it was working to prevent similar incidents happening again.

 

Mr Jary was hired by MMP to carry out minor repairs to a carport and a gutter of a rented bungalow in Welshpool, which the company managed for the owner. But the HSE said MMP failed to ensure the work was properly planned and organised or if Mr Jary was competent to carry out the work.

 

Chester Crown Court heard that Mr Jary fell through the plastic roof of the carport on August 10, 2010.  MMP admitted breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974 and was fined £75,000 and ordered to pay costs of £11,153.95.

 

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Chris Wilcox said: “Roger Jary might be alive today if simple safety measures had been put in place.

 

“Morris, Marshall and Poole had a duty to ensure the safety of those they employed, whether working directly for them or not. If your business in managing properties then you must ensure that anyone you engage to maintain those properties is competent and carries out their work safely to ensure their safety and that of others."

 

In a statement, the MMP said: "Mr Jary was a well respected local businessman who had a long and successful association with the firm.

 

"Many partners and staff knew Mr Jary personally and were shocked and saddened by his passing. Morris Marshall & Poole have made determined efforts to ensure that everything possible is done to prevent a similar accident occurring in the future, but at this time our thoughts are with Mr Jary, and his family and friends.”