Dairymaster Unlimited fined €400,000 for fatal gate accident in Ireland; UK firm also fined for dumper crash

In Limerick Circuit Criminal Court, Dairymaster Unlimited Company was fined €400,000 after pleading guilty to breaches of safety, health and welfare legislation following the death of a farmer in County Limerick in 2020. The company was fined €200,000 for each of two sections of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005. The court hearing highlighted the need for manufacturers to ensure machinery is properly designed and supplied with adequate safety information.

Separately, Jim Yates & Sons Limited, a groundworks contractor based near Warrington, England, was fined £20,000 plus costs after a one‑tonne dumper truck overturned on a construction site in Ince in October 2022, seriously injuring a 27‑year‑old worker. An HSE investigation found the company had instructed operators not to wear seat belts and had failed to protect an open excavation. HSE inspector Seve Gomez‑Aspron said the incident was foreseeable and could have been prevented with proper safety measures.