Property management agent, Simon Scott-Barrett, of Cluttons, has been fined £14,000 after an incident on 5 October 1998, in which a man died after falling 28 metres.

Blackfriars Crown Court in London heard that Scott-Barrett, of Cluttons, Hyde Park, has failed to ensure that there were adequate safety precautions, or safe access to the roof of a six-storey residential building in London's Westbourne Street.

The prosecution was brought by the HSE following its investigation into the death of a self-employed maintenance worker at the building.

The man was clearing roof gutters and had been walking across the sloping roof, from which there was nothing to prevent his fall.

HSE inspector, John Higginson, said: "I hope that this case will send a message to property managers that they have a duty to properly manage the safety of contractors working under their control. A few simple precautions could easily prevent such tragic accidents occurring."


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