Renault prosecuted for serious safety breaches

Renault Retail Group UK has been fined after serious safety breaches relating to faulty vehicle lifts.

Hendon Magistrates’ Court has heard how Renault Retail Group UK repeatedly failed to ensure that its vehicle lifting equipment at its sites in Coulsdon and West London was maintained in an efficient working order and in good repair.

The failure resulted in its workers using faulty vehicle lifts which put technicians in danger.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Renault Retail Group UK was warned that the vehicle lifts posed a danger to users.

However, between October 5, 2015, and September 29, 2016, the company repeatedly failed to ensure its workers did not use the defective lifts.

Renault Retail Group, of Concord Road, Western Avenue, London, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 5 (1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) and Regulation 10 (3) (a) of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations (LOLER) 1998.

The company was fined £200,000 and ordered to pay costs of £17,217.84.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Jane Wolfenden said: “These breaches could have led to a very serious incident and it is fortunate nobody was injured as a result.

“This case highlights the importance of maintaining work equipment in a safe condition in order to protect workers from danger."

A spokesman for Renault Retail Group told Fleet News that its non-compliance with health and safety regulations in 2015, "mostly related to some technical defects" on four vehicle lifts in two garage workshops. 

He continued: "Renault Retail Group UK takes the safety of workers and customers extremely seriously, and while nobody was harmed or injured, Renault Retail Group UK has taken significant measures across the group to ensure that these historical non-compliances do not reoccur.”

HSE is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety.