Company and director fined thousands after 'uncontrolled spread of asbestos-containing material' found

A company and its director have been fined by a judge after 'an uncontrolled spread of asbestos-containing materials' was found at its premises, the Heath and Safety Executive has revealed.

The HSE said workers' 'lives were deliberately put at risk as profits were prioritised over safety'. The case involves Eye Track Limited and its site off Talbot Road in Stretford, Trafford.

The HSE said the company pleaded guilty to breaching two sections of the Health and Safety at Work Act and was fined £20,000 with £18,78 costs.

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At the same hearing at Manchester Crown Court on Thursday, its director Selcuk Pinarbasi, of Bankhall Lane, Hale, Trafford, also admitted breaches of the Act and was jailed for 20 weeks, suspended for 12 months. He was also fined £75,000 and ordered to pay costs of £18,783.

The HSE said workers were exposed to asbestos and its potential harmful effects. Inspectors visited Eye Track Limited's warehouse in Stretford and said they 'found an uncontrolled spread of asbestos containing materials around the premises'.

In a statement, Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety said: "HSE attended the premises on Talbot Road in April 2019 after concerns were raised over workers unsafely working at height during the demolition of a number of units and construction of eight new residential houses.

"During the inspection, HSE found significant amounts asbestos-containing materials across the site, mostly large amounts of debris associated with the breakage of asbestos-containing roof sheets from the demolished units. One unit taken down was estimated to contain 100 square metres of