A FERRY firm has been fined £30,000 after a worker fell 2.5m onto the deck of one of its vessels.

Red Funnel admitted breaching safety rules after a worker fell from the unprotected edge of its Red Falcon ship’s mezzanine car deck.

The worker was uncoiling a reel of electrical cable on a mezzanine deck at Southampton docks, when he inadvertently stepped off a raised edge and fell 2.5m to the lower deck.

He sustained multiple fractures to his foot and wrist in the incident, which took place in September 2015.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Red Funnel should have taken steps such as lowering the mezzanine deck or raising the edge protection barriers on the deck in order to eliminate the risk of falling from height.

The firm, based on Bugle Street, Southampton, pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to discharge the duty imposed upon them under the Health and Safety at Work Act.

During a hearing at Southampton Crown Court, the company was fined £30,000 and ordered to pay costs of £10,800.

Speaking after the case, HSE inspector Andrew Johnson said: “Companies have a duty to ensure the risks from working at height are properly controlled.

"Simple steps to eliminate the risk of falling or prevent it were not taken and a serious injury occurred.”

Fran Collins, Red Funnel’s CEO said: “Immediately following our own detailed internal investigation in 2015, we accepted that there were shortcomings in our contractor control and management processes, which were rectified immediately, and accordingly and in line with our moral and company values, we entered an early guilty plea to the HSE’s charge.

“Notwithstanding the fact that Red Funnel cooperated fully at all stages with the HSE’s investigation and, having entered a guilty plea at the earliest opportunity in June 2018, we are disappointed that the process took so long to come to the final hearing.”