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Teenager Loses Fingers In Horrific Window Saw Accident
A window manufacturer has been fined £100,000 after a teenage worker had two fingers severed by a cross-cutting saw.
The 19-year-old was working for Ford Windows Limited at the company’s site in Sheffield when the incident happened.
He had loaded a cross-cut saw with a length of windowsill, which had been stored outside in the rain. As he went to cut the windowsill, his hand slipped off the wet workpiece into the unguarded part of the blade, resulting in severing parts of two fingers on his left hand.
Investigation
The Health and Safety Executive investigation found that the company had not conducted a suitable and sufficient risk assessment of the cross-cut saw; failed to identify the need to adjust the nose guard of the saw to minimise the amount of blade exposed; and failed to identify the need to dry the materials before cutting.
The investigation also found that the company also failed to provide suitable information, instruction and training to employees on working safely for this activity.
Ford fined
Ford Windows Limited of Catley Road, Darnall, Sheffield pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and received a fine of £100,000 and ordered to pay costs of £4227.50.
After the hearing the HM principal inspector Chris Tilley said: “The company failed in several areas. They had no competent person responsible for health and safety at the site, they failed to conduct a suitable and sufficient risk assessment and therefore did not have a suitable safe system of work for the safe use of the saw, which left the nose guard of the saw incorrectly positioned.
“The company’s failure to risk assess meant that they could not communicate information, instruction, and training to their employees on how to use the saw safely.
“If the company had taken the time to risk assess the required controls, to safely use the cross-cut saw, they would have found that suitable measures could have been implemented for zero cost, as the guard was available on the machine and simply needed manually adjusting to guard the blade.”
Picture: The blade on a cross-cutting saw which took two fingers from a young man starting his working life at Ford Windows in Sheffield
Article written by Cathryn Ellis
20th July 2025