Poundstretcher Limited, which operates two retail shops in the New Forest, has been fined a total of £48,000 and ordered to pay £8,997 costs, following prosecution by New Forest District Council for health and safety offences.
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Poundstretcher Limited sells a range of household goods from its stores in Station Road, New Milton and Totton Retail Park. The company pleaded guilty to four offences under the Health and Safety Act at Work etc. Act 1974 at Southampton Magistrates’ Court on Thursday 4 April 2013.
Three of the offences (one in Totton and two in New Milton) related to over-stocking, which resulted in unsafe stacking, obstructed aisles, stairs and fire exit. The fourth offence related to the failure to provide protective safety wear for staff accepting deliveries on pallets and using pallet trucks.
When sentencing, the Magistrates said that the company should have had adequate health and safety policies, risk assessments and training in place and also that the company had failed to take sufficient notice of warnings and advice provided by the council’s health and safety officers. The Magistrates took into account previous convictions relating to Poundstretcher stores when issuing a fine of £12,000 for each of the four offences and in deciding to award full costs to the council.
New Forest District Council’s head of public health and community safety, Annie Righton, said: “I am pleased that the serious nature of this offence was confirmed by the court. It is totally unacceptable for a company to expect its employees to go to work and risk their health and safety”.
