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PHW · Manufacturing · 2026-09-04

Samworth Brothers Ltd fined £594,000 after workers were scalded by steam while repairing pipework

Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire · Birmingham Magistrates' Court

What happened

Two workers suffered scald injuries while replacing a leaking gasket in an isolation valve on steam pipework at the Kettleby Foods factory. The gantry they worked from did not provide access to the pipework, so they stepped off it to work on top of the boiler, and hot water splashed them when the gasket was removed.

Injuries: burns: one worker 4-5% subdermal burns, the other 9% subdermal second-degree burns

The breach

Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974

The sentence

  • Fine: £594,000
  • Costs: £5,834
  • Other sentence: £6,000 compensation to the injured employee
HSE inspector

“A company this size should have known better. This was a wholly avoidable incident which could have resulted in even more serious consequences.”

What would have prevented it

Work on pressurised steam pipework must be carried out from a properly designed access platform, never improvised by stepping onto adjacent plant.

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Source: HSE press release, Food manufacturing giant fined £594,000 after two workers scalded at Melton Mowbray site