What is the relevance of him being the father of nine? A death is always atragic event. The point of this is someone died because of someone else not doing what he should have done. The level of the fine will always be emotive and generally not high enough. However, the judge is the sole deciding factor in this and he has to work within the law. Was the guilty party a single operator or part of a bigger company? If a single person 160k is quite high in its own right but a compamy it can be rather small. It depends on the whole picture not just five lines on a web page.

Just checked out the IOSH home page but could not see the article. Without reading the facts it is difficult to comment on the sanction. Meanwhile, I noticed another story where a land owner had been given a nine month custodial sentence for failing to comply with Enforcement Notices - nobody was even hurt! The disparity with sanctions between different cases never ceases to amaze me. I recall a fatality not so long ago where the company were only fined £1 because they had gone into administration.

Yes, it does beggar belief. My wife's company were fined a £million plus by the FSA for a discrepancy, even though they had reported the error voluntary! It is one of the reasons health and safety has no respect in this country because the sanctions are so pitiful.