Company fined over severed fingers

A Cambridge company has been fined after a member of staff had two fingers severed by a machine.

The prosecution against Food Packaging Ltd and a director of the company was brought by the Health and Safety Executive.

The company was accused of failing to ensure the safety of its employees under the Health and Safety at Work Act.

The prosecution said the female employee was trying to clear a blockage in a cutting machine with a colleague last December, when the machine activated and cut off two fingers.

The company was fined £11,000 for the offence, £3,000 for a separate offence relating to failing to carry out risk assessments and ordered to pay £2,000 in costs.

Company director Andrew Turness was fined £7,000 and ordered to pay £1,000 costs.