Golf Club fined after golfer injured in accident

Feldon Valley Golf Club, near Brailes in Stratford-on-Avon District has been fined after an accident at the club where a golfer sustained an injury to his left foot in June 2011.

In December 2012, Leamington Spa Magistrates' Court heard that a greenkeeper of Feldon Valley Golf Club was cutting grass on the 14^th hole using a Ransoms 951D batwing ride on mower.  At the same time a golfer was playing the hole, driving his golf buggy.

The golfer parked his buggy in an area where the greenkeeper was planning to cut grass.  The greenkeeper turned the mower left and proceeded up the incline so as to avoid this area.  In doing so, the mower lost power and stalled; it rolled down the slope and collided with the golfer, trapping him between the buggy and the mower as he retrieved his clubs from the rear of the buggy.

The golfer was taken by ambulance to Horton Hospital in Banbury where he was treated for a cut and soft tissue damage to his left foot.

The incident was reported to the Health and Safety Executive's Incident Contact Centre and Stratford-on-Avon District Council carried out an investigation. It was found that the company had identified the hand or park brake on the mower as 'not working', but failed to repair it until after the accident.  The greenkeeper had lost all means of avoiding the accident once the mower's engine had stalled, a result of the loss of the mower's engine braking system, power steering and the defective hand or park brake.

Mr Neil Simpson, Managing Director of Feldon Valley Golf Club Limited pleaded guilty and the company was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay the District Council's costs of £4,000 and a £15 victim's surcharge.

Cllr Chris Williams, Chairman of Regulatory Committee says: “This incident was entirely preventable.  Brakes on machinery such as this should be in good working order.  The fact that the company had identified a defect with the brake and failed to repair it is particularly disturbing. The company should have made sure any machinery being operated by employees was fit for purpose.  The District Council together with the HSE will not hesitate to prosecute companies who put their employees and others at risk in this way."