G4S fined £1.8m for Legionnaires Disease exposure risk

Fiona Horlick acted for Harlow District Council in their prosecution of G4S Cash Solutions Ltd for serious breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

G4S were sentenced on 2nd September 2016 at Chelmsford Crown Court. The Judge found a ‘flagrant breach of the law‘ following G4S’s persistent failure over a number of years to protect its staff and visitors from the risk of exposure to legionella bacteria which carries a risk of death from Legionnaires Disease.

G4S, a company with a turnover of £250 million, were fined a total of £1.8m and ordered to pay all the prosecution costs.

The Judge, in applying the new sentencing guidelines, found very high culpability coupled with a statistically low risk of harm. Although G4S’s turnover brought them into the category of a very large organisation, a change of culture at the company enabled the Judge to bring down the overall level of the fine.

Fiona had advised the council from an early stage and represented the council throughout.

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News 7 Sep, 2016