A man died after being crushed to death when a 130kg window fell onto him from a luxury penthouse. Mick Ferris, 53, was killed when the window crashed down 26 storeys from The Corniche, an upmarket development in Vauxhall, London, on October 2, 2018.
Property developer St James Group Ltd was hit with a £1 million fine and specialist façade contractor Lindner Prater was slapped with a £300,000 penalty at a sentencing hearing at Inner London Crown Court on Thursday.
Fatal accident details
Mr Ferris, who worked as a driver for Clarkes of London, had been making his way back to his coach when the window pane — weighing 130kg and measuring roughly 85cm wide and 190cm tall — plunged about 300ft at 10.40am.
The Corniche, situated on the River Thames's Albert Embankment, boasts "panoramic views" over the Houses of Parliament and luxury flats in the building — complete with a gym, pool and spa — have been advertised for sale at £3million.
Court proceedings and convictions
St James and Lindner Prater were convicted of ignoring "foreseeable risks" while luxury architecture firm Foster + Partners and engineering consultants Wintech Ltd were acquitted of the same charge. The companies had all been on trial at Inner London Crown Court for "failing to discharge a duty" under section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
A window panel had dropped from the same development in August 2017 but the design was not significantly altered as a result, the trial heard. Rachel, the widow of Mr Ferris, described his death as "so sudden" and "out of the blue", stating that it "could have been prevented".
In a statement read out in court by the prosecution, Ms Ferris said: "If somebody had done something differently – anything – it would have changed our lives. We wouldn't be in this position. I know it wasn't just one person, but one person could have changed this. One person could have asked 'can't we do this better?'. What those companies did killed my husband."
Ms Ferris went on to say that her husband was a "great dad and grandad", and "loved driving coaches", having followed in his own father's footsteps as a professional driver. She revealed that 400 people attended his funeral, which featured a coach bearing his name, adding "he is missed by so many it was unbelievable".
The grieving widow added: "Mick was just minding his own business. One minute there, one minute gone. The thought this could have happened to anybody is always with me. It could have been a child."
Design and safety failures
Jurors were informed that the design of the window in the Corniche was "not safe" because it opened outwards and was held in place by a single metal "restrictor", meaning it could be forced off by the wind.
Mr Justice Boyle stated he was not sentencing the firms on the basis the design itself was unsafe as they were "common within the industry" and there was no Health and Safety Executive (HSE) guidance prohibiting their use. He further stated that the "restrictor, if present and connected, would have prevented detachment".
Judge Boyle expressed that St James should have been more "robust" in "ensuring the critical safety component was present and engaged". He also mentioned that Lindner Prater "should have done more to complete and document the risk assessment process".
On top of the fine, Judge Boyle instructed both companies to cover costs amounting to £125,000 each. HSE principal inspector James Goldfinch described Mr Ferris as a "hardworking man just going about his day".
Speaking outside the courtroom, Mr Goldfinch added: "He lost his life due to the failings of two leading companies in their field. The fact lessons had not been learnt from a near miss the year before makes what happened on that day all the more galling."
"For a window to fall once was quite extraordinary, for it to fall again was simply criminal. The reality is that anybody could have been walking past the building that day. Nobody's life should be put in danger due to the clear failings of others."
A spokesperson for St James commented: "The death of Mick Ferris in 2018 was tragic. Our thoughts remain with his family and friends. We acknowledge the court's sentencing decision and the fine imposed. Safety is of fundamental importance to St James, and remains our highest priority."
Companies' responsibilities and response
Foster + Partners, the firm behind some of the world's most iconic structures such as The Gherkin, was responsible for the initial designs of the Corniche. The company maintained its responsibilities didn't stretch to the technical elements of the design once construction was underway.
St James assumed the role of "principle designer" in 2015, which meant it bore a "duty to co-ordinate matters in relation to health and safety", the court was told.
Speaking for the HSE, Gordon Menzies informed the court on Thursday that there had been a "lack of proper risk assessment". In mitigation for St James, Prashant Popat KC described it as a "horrific tragedy and preventable incident", stating that Mr Ferris's death "should not have happened".
He continued that the company was "deeply remorseful and regretful", with the incident being "taken incredibly seriously by the company".
Mr Popat argued the firm's shortcoming was "secondly to Lindner's failure" and "occurred even though St James did carry out a considerable amount of monitoring activity on this site".
Speaking in mitigation for Lindner Prater, James Leonard KC insisted the incident "should not have happened", claiming the "fatal accident was almost certainly a consequence of a failure of reinstatement" by a subcontractor the company had employed to work on the site.
He continued there was "no way of knowing when this error was made" which meant it wasn't possible to "point to a failure of monitoring or inspection by either of these two defendants".
