Owner of garage where mechanic died after being crushed by truck in 'avoidable' tragedy is jailed

Joseph Jones has been locked up after the death of his 55 year-old friend and employee Kenneth McCord

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The owner of a garage where a much-loved mechanic was fatally crushed underneath a truck he was working on has been jailed.

Kenneth McCord, 55 known as Kenny, died after a flatbed truck he removing parts from fell on him. His employer Joseph Jones was today locked up for health and safety breaches following the "wholly avoidable" tragedy.

A court was told Mr Jones oversaw an "amateurish and shambolic operation" at JJ Tyres on Lodwick Street in Bootle, Merseyside and prioritised "cost-cutting at the expense of safety."

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On the afternoon of July 16 2020, Mr McCord was on duty at the premises and was salvaging parts from a Ford Transit flatbed which was set to be scrapped, reports the Liverpool Echo.

A prop had initially been used in order to prop the vehicle up, but this was subsequently removed by a colleague and from then onwards it was only supported only by its hydraulics system, Liverpool Crown Court was told.

Lee Hughes, prosecuting, described how the truck then fell and pinned him between the flatbed and its chassis while he was carrying out tasks underneath. A forklift truck was used to free Mr McCord, who was initially sat up in a chair talking and was given water to drink.

He then needed to use the toilet, having to be carried to the bathroom by coworkers as he was unable to walk unaided. When fellow staff members subsequently checked on his wellbeing, he was found to have collapsed onto the floor.

An ambulance was then called to take him to Aintree Hospital, where Mr McCord - who was described as a "lovely man", a "nice fella" and a "good grafter" - underwent surgery, but died of his "significant internal injuries" at around 6.30pm. Mr Hughes said the tragedy has been an "obviously preventable and foreseeable" accident, adding: "This would not have happened if the tipper was suitably supported by a prop while Mr McCord was working underneath."

An investigation into the business, which was owned and solely operated by 44-year-old Jones, by the Health and Safety Executive found that it had "no policies or procedures" in place for safe working practices. JJ Tyres also had "no health and safety documentation or systems in place", while its employees had "no formal training" and were working cash in hand.

Mr Hughes said that the garage prioritised "cost cutting at the expense of safety" and had no insurance policies in place. He added: "Mr Jones was in control and should have been supervising and monitoring the work, but failed to do so."

A statement was read out to the court on behalf of Mr McCord's partner of 21 years Nicola McCall, who described herself as his "widow". She stated that he had known "Joe" for more than 30 years and had "occasionally" worked for him for around a year.

The firm's boss was said to have knocked on her door to inform her of the accident, later returning to say he had been rushed to hospital and ultimately being told by police that he had died in surgery. Ms McCall reported that she has since had to move in with Mr McCord's mum as she can no longer afford the rent on their home in Bootle without his wages, while she is now reliant on food banks and is still paying off the cost of his funeral.

Her statement added: "My life has changed massively since Kenny’s death. Since his death, my health has not been good and I’ve struggled to come to terms with his loss as he was such a big part of my life. Emotionally, I was a mess. I struggled to talk about the incident.

"I would cry constantly and still do and wouldn’t leave the house in case I met somebody that we both knew. It would bring up all my feelings again. I stopped looking after myself and my own health. I stopped eating, I no longer wanted to live.

"I miss the silly things that Kenny used to do, like always tormenting people in fun ways, and cherish the videos that I still have of him on my phone. I miss all the camping trips we used to go on. It's the little things I miss. I only saw Kenny making one cup of tea the entire time we were together. This was a terrible accident. It could have easily been avoided."

Bernice Campbell, defending, told the court that her client - who has five previous convictions for offences including assault, criminal damage and harassment - had contributed nearly £2,000 towards the costs of Mr McCord's funeral and volunteered as a kids' boxing coach. She added: "Joseph Jones has, all the way along, been remorseful for the death of his colleague and friend and a person he has grown up with, and has been devastated by the loss of Kenny.

"This has never strayed from his mind. His anxiety has been through the roof. What he has done is be negligent. It shouldn't have happened. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Mr Jones reflects on this, but it cannot bring his friend back.

"I believe Mr Jones is winding down his business. It is non-profitable. He wasn't turning a blind eye. He was ignorant and should have known better, but didn't. He is a man who does his best to work in the community and tries to help. He is extremely sorry and devastated at the loss of Kenny McCord."

Jones, of Townsend Avenue in Norris Green, admitted failing to discharge health, safety and welfare duties to an employee. The dad-of-one was imprisoned for 10 months this afternoon, waving to his supporters in the public gallery and saying "see you later" before he was led down to the cells as Mr McCord's family sat in tears.

Sentencing, Judge David Swinnerton said: "The accident and his death were wholly avoidable. The risk was obvious and easily preventable.

"I am sure you regret what that resulted in and if you could turn the clock back you would, but you should have done something about it. This would not have happened.

"I describe it as an amateurish, shambolic backstreet operation. Some people like to refer to regulations as red tape, but this indicates precisely why regulations exist - to stop injury and the loss of life in the workplace.

"You gave no thought to that risk. I accept you are devastated that this happened but that is no comfort to Mr McCord's mother and partner, whose lives have been shattered by his death.

"You display complete ignorance over your duties and responsibilities as an employee. But you indicate your remorse as to what happened.

"References speak of how highly regarded you are held by others and the positive things you do in the community. I do not find the cause to be deliberate cost cutting, you just never gave it any thought, time or effort.

"I suspect you have probably learned your lesson. What happened was traumatic to you. The result of all this is a fatality. A man has died as a result of all of this.

"No sentence can reflect the value of a life. But I take the view that a message really has to go out that if you run a small backstreet operation you have to follow the rules, regulations and procedures for the safety of your employees."

Jones will also be liable to pay £40,000 in costs. HSE inspector David Bellis said following the sentencing: "Nicola is, sadly, correct. We found that, had the support arm been applied, the collapse would not have happened. This will only take me a minute is a phrase we hear all too often, yet it is crucial the correct equipment is used when working under vehicles.

"This incident could so easily have been avoided by simply carrying out correct control measures and safe working practices. Companies should be aware that the HSE takes fatal accidents seriously, no matter the size of the company, and will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards."