Firm fined £10,000 for asbestos incident

Saturday 30th January 2010, 2:59PM GMT.

Alan Langlois

A DEMOLITION and recycling firm has been fined £10,000 after exposing two of its workers to potentially deadly asbestos.

A A Langlois Haulage allowed the two Polish workers to come into contact with the fibres while dismantling a ceiling at a property in St Lawrence.

The Royal Court yesterday heard that the pair did not know the ceiling contained asbestos and were allowed to carry out the work without protective gear.

The company pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work (Jersey) Law and the Asbestos-Licensing (Jersey) Regulations 2008.

Crown Advocate Sally Sharpe said that the firm should be fined £15,000, but the court reduced the sum to £10,000 after accepting that the breach was not deliberate and that it had been caused by human error. A A Langlois Haulage was also ordered to pay £2,500 costs.

Read the full story in the Jersey Evening Post. Click here for subscription details. Individual editions are also available online.