Contractor in court after falling tree paralyses worker

A forestry worker in Dorset has been left with life-changing injuries after he was hit by a tree, which was being felled by a contractor.

Gerald Hayward, trading as GH Hayward Forestry Contractors, had been hired to clear trees affected by ash dieback on the Fonthill Estate in Salisbury, Wiltshire. At the time of the accident on 12 January 2022, he was making a back cut to a tree but it fell in a direction he didn’t expect.

As a result, the tree landed on a nearby worker standing in a bridle path. The man, from Frome in Somerset, suffered eight broken ribs, a broken pelvis, two broken ankles, a collapsed lung and internal bleeding. Doctors placed him in an induced coma, and he spent four months in hospital. The man is now paralysed.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigated the incident. They found Mr Hayward, in his capacity as the organiser of the work, had failed to implement a safe working zone around the tree.

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Felling a tree safely necessitates a zone twice the size of the tree in question. A ‘hinge’ cut leaves a section of unsawn wood connected to the tree, holding it to the stump for most of the fall. The position of the hinge affects the direction of fall. HSE’s investigation found that Mr Hayward did not leave a functioning hinge when he cut down the ash tree, resulting in an unpredictable direction of fall.

Appearing at Salisbury Magistrates’ Court on 15 October 2024, Gerald Hayward pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(2) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. He was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay £1,000 in costs.

HSE Inspector James Hole said after the hearing:

“This was a serious incident that has led to an individual sustaining life-changing injuries meaning he is now unable to work and requires lifelong care.

“Mr Hayward failed to create a safe working zone around the tree while it was being cut down – this is a standard working practice for tree felling in woodland.

“He failed to implement the correct control measures and a safe system of work. Had Mr Hayward done this then this incident would have been prevented and the individual would not be paralysed and facing the rest of his life without the use of his legs.”