RISK assessments at a York waste business where a woman was killed by a reversing lorry could have been better, an inquest was told.

The inquest into the death of Betty Elizabeth Smith, 73, on January 29, 2020, ended on Wednesday (March 29) with a jury concluding it was an accident.

As reported previously, Mrs Smith lived on a travellers' site in Outgang Lane, Osbaldwick, and died near the entrance to nearby skip hire and waste management business, Martins of York.

The tragedy happened when she was paying a regular visit to the firm, where she would collect free wood from bins left outside the entrance by staff.

Representatives of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) told the hearing that the risk assessments in place at Martins could have been improved.

Read more coverage of the inquest:

The inquest heard that a risk assessment of Martins was carried out by an external company and then signed off internally.

The risk assessment said that no unauthorised visitors were to be allowed on the site.

It also said that using a banksman - an operative trained to direct vehicle movement on or around a site - to guide reversing vehicles was not necessary in all cases of vehicles reversing – with the company happy with the procedure in place. 

A report on an HSE investigation into the accident found that there was a “well-established” risk of pedestrians being struck during work activities.

York Press: The scene of the tragedy in Osbaldwick in January 2020The scene of the tragedy in Osbaldwick in January 2020 (Image: The Press)

Sarah Melville-Crowe, of the HSE, visited the site and found there were signs stating that unauthorised pedestrians were prohibited from the site, but they were not displayed at the entrance.

She said that suitable measures needed to be implemented at the site to ensure pedestrians were kept safe from vehicle – including clear routes for any pedestrians where they had been permitted to enter.

She said that the reversing of vehicles should be suspended if a member of the public entered the site.

She also said that the use of a banksman to guide reversing vehicles was not enforced at the site, and nor was segregating pedestrians while vehicles reversed.

Another HSE official said the risk assessment in place was “not sufficient” and found that points he had raised had still not been implemented on his second visit to the site.

Martins of York declined to comment after the inquest.