Royal Mail fined £90,000 after driver crushed to death

Royal Mail has been fined £90,000 and ordered to pay £42,500 costs after one of its drivers was crushed to death.

Colin Smith, 57, was standing between a tractor and a trailer at the Heathrow Worldwide Distribution Centre in Slough when he was killed in 2006.

A colleague, who did not realise Mr Smith was there, was reversing one of the Royal Mail vehicles at the time.

Royal Mail admitted breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act at Reading Crown Court.

Mr Smith's colleague and friend, Ian Wheeler, 42, who was driving the tractor, accidentally reversed into Mr Smith, thinking he was in his own vehicle.

The big thing for me really was the acquittal of Ian Wheeler. That was definitely the right thing Joan Page, Colin Smith's ex-wife

The father-of-one, from Reading, suffered horrific injuries and died at the site in Langley on 5 September 2006.

The firm admitted breaching health and safety laws because it had not anticipated such dangers could exist at the centre, which processes international mail.

Mr Wheeler, of Bracknell, Berkshire, was cleared of breaching health and safety laws by a jury at Reading Crown Court earlier this month.

Sentencing Royal Mail, Judge Stephen John described the incident as a "distressing case".

"It has not been suggested that any individual employed by Royal Mail was reckless or displayed a cavalier attitude towards health and safety," he said.

'Substantial' blind spot

"It is an additional tragedy in this case that the driver of the tractor unit, Ian Wheeler, was a friend of Mr Smith."

No-one would ever know why Mr Smith was standing between the vehicles, which was a "substantial" blind spot area, the judge added.

Safety measures have since been introduced to ensure people cannot be trapped in such a way.

After the hearing, Mr Smith's ex-wife, Joan Page, said: "The big thing for me really was the acquittal of Ian Wheeler. That was definitely the right thing.

"I just hope that he can move on slightly with his life because it's been really hard for him. I think this gives closure for all of us, but it's been a long time coming."