Take new corporate manslaughter law seriously

The first charge for corporate manslaughter under a new law has been announced by the Crown Prosecution Service.

As a result a director now faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, and the company itself, an unlimited fine.

Mark Wilson, health and safety specialist at Cartwright King warns :-

"Companies and their directors need to take this very seriously. The risks of failing to comply with health and safety are now much more significant and it is clear that the authorities are going to bring prosecutions."

"In the current economic climate companies are quite understandably looking at ways of keeping overheads down. If however they are involved in any serious accident, investigation or prosecution they do really need to get expert representation as soon as possible to minimise the risks which are now clearly much greater under the new law."

This article reproduced by kind permission of Bradgate Publishing and appeared in the June 2009 edition of 'In Business' the journal of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Chamber of Commerce.

To see how Safedrive Fleet & Instructor Training can help your business comply with these important Acts see our 'Driver Assessment' page.

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