ExxonMobil fined £267,000
Plus a train derailment update, two more notable prosecutions, and an AI tool for observations.
📝 Noteworthy news and updates.
ExxonMobil fined £267k after five leaks HSE traces to a broken inspection system, not bad luck
Five hydrocarbon leaks at the Fife Ethylene Plant between 2018 and 2019, all related to corrosion to an asset which was covered with insulation. Worth checking whether your own similar assets and actually remove insulation to check for corrosion.
Train derailment: 30 hurt, RAIB pointing at a track geometry fault so far
A Southern service came off the rails near Lewes on 13 August, three carriages over on their side, 20 people in hospital. Early RAIB evidence shows wheel-climb marks and a track fault on the approach. The investigation is still open, covering track maintenance, the embankment and the weather that day. How is your company managing hot weather?
Rail Business Daily, 19 August 2026
Still no legal max temperature at work, but HSE is finally reviewing the code
There's no cap on how hot a workplace can legally get, just a duty to risk-assess. HSE is reviewing the Approved Code of Practice behind that duty and might consult on an actual number later this year. Comes after the UK's fifth heatwave of the summer. Don't hold your breath for one figure that works for a warehouse and a control room alike, HSE's own people are already saying that's unlikely.
British Safety Council, 9 July 2026
Same packaging firm fined twice in under a year for the same kind of guarding failure
A worker's hand went into an unguarded laminator nip point while he was cleaning it, £60k fine. Nine months earlier the same company paid £277,500 after someone died in an unguarded machine at a different site. Same lesson, different postcode. If you've got more than one site, that's probably something worth asking yourselves: if you fixed something then has the fix reached every location, or just the one where you found the problem.
Shropshire Star, 13 August 2026
Sawmill director banned five years for sitting on HSE improvement notices
Wood dust controls and lift truck training, both flagged by HSE improvement notices, both ignored. Company fined £20k, the MD personally fined £5k and disqualified as a director for five years.
HSE Media Centre, 21 August 2026
🛠️ Noteworthy apps, tools, and resources.
CompScience Safe Work Plan | A free AI tool that turns a job site photo into a risk-scored plan
Photograph the site, describe the job, get hazards, controls and a risk score back in seconds. Free with no paywall for the small firms. It's American-built, so bear this in mind if you operate outside of the US!
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