A fish processing firm in Aberdeenshire has been ordered to pay £245,000 after a worker suffered serious injuries when dragged into machinery at its facility. According to BBC News, the 30-year-old chargehand was attempting to clear a jammed box from a rack loader at Lunar Freezing and Cold Storage in Peterhead when his right arm was pulled into the mechanism. The incident on 19 August 2025 left him with a fractured jaw and injuries to his chest and arm requiring surgical intervention.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive revealed that a critical safety guard had been removed during maintenance approximately two weeks before the incident and was never reinstalled. The company pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety regulations at Peterhead Sheriff Court. According to the Health and Safety Executive, the firm was also ordered to pay an additional £18,375 victim surcharge alongside the main fine.
How did the incident occur?
The worker entered the production line to dislodge a jammed box without first isolating the power supply. He climbed onto the conveyor and pressed down the lid of the box to release the jam, but the machine then restarted unexpectedly. His arm was pulled into the mechanism until his head made contact with moving parts. A colleague who heard his calls for assistance immediately shut down the machine, but the worker had already sustained serious injuries.
The injured worker was transported to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary where he underwent surgery to insert metal plates into his jaw. He remained hospitalised for three days but made a full recovery and returned to work approximately six weeks after the incident.
What safety failures were identified?
The HSE investigation found that a section of fixed guarding adjacent to the production line had been removed during maintenance and was not replaced. This absence of the guard meant workers could access the production line without the power being isolated. Under normal circumstances, employees would have been required to pass through an interlocked gate that would have automatically switched off the machinery when opened.
According to HSE findings, staff had used the gap created by the missing guard to reach the machinery on multiple occasions when boxes became jammed, rather than entering through the interlocked gate. Maintenance personnel told HSE investigators that they had observed the guard was missing and had witnessed employees using the gap, yet it was not reinstated.
A further systemic failure emerged in the company's maintenance procedures. The weekly inspection checklist used by the in-house maintenance team did not include verification of the integrity of non-electrical fixed guarding, meaning the missing guard would not have been flagged during routine checks.
What did regulators say?
This was a wholly preventable incident which left a worker seriously injured. A missing guard and an unchecked gap left the way open for a worker to be dragged into a machine. Guards must be kept in place, and checks must cover every guard, not just the electrical ones.
These comments came from HSE inspector Nicky Smith, who oversaw the investigation into the incident. The inspector's statement underscores the preventable nature of the injury and the importance of comprehensive safety protocols that extend beyond electrical safeguards.
What regulations were breached?
The company pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) and (2) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and Section 33(1)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. These regulations establish requirements for the provision and maintenance of safeguards on machinery used in the workplace.
Context of workplace machinery incidents
This case reflects a broader pattern of serious injuries involving machinery in UK workplaces. In June 2026, a pallet company was fined £160,000 after a worker's arm was trapped in machinery for 45 minutes due to safety fence failures. Similarly, an engineering firm was fined £50,000 in July 2026 after a worker died from a 13-foot fall while dismantling a cleanroom, with the HSE finding that the company had failed to properly assess risks or implement required safety supports.
The Lunar Freezing incident also parallels an earlier case involving conveyor machinery. In September 2026, an aggregates firm was fined £24,000 after a worker was crushed to death in a conveyor at its Dagenham depot, with the company having failed to adequately guard a gap in machinery that posed a known entrapment risk.
Key Facts
- A 30-year-old chargehand suffered a fractured jaw and chest and arm injuries when pulled into a rack loader at Lunar Freezing and Cold Storage in Peterhead on 19 August 2025
- A safety guard had been removed during maintenance two weeks before the incident and was not replaced, allowing workers to bypass the interlocked gate system
- The company was fined £245,000 plus an £18,375 victim surcharge for breaching equipment safety regulations and the Health and Safety at Work Act
- The HSE found that maintenance staff had observed the missing guard and workers using the gap but failed to reinstate the protection
- The company's weekly inspection checklist did not include checks on non-electrical fixed guarding, creating a systemic oversight
