A Lancashire dairy farm partnership has been fined £80,000 and ordered to pay £8,605 by Preston Magistrates Court, following the death of a farmhand who suffered fatal head injuries from a tyre explosion on the farm.
Father of one, Joshua Hardman, had been helping one of the partners in the business, Bill Hesketh, reseat and inflate a tractor tyre on the farm in Hutton near Preston, on May 7, 2021, when the tragic incident occurred.
The court heard that while the victim, who was 23 at the time of his death, inflated the inner tube within the tyre, it exploded suddenly and the release of compressed air propelled the wheel rim into Joshua, causing traumatic head injuries.
Tyre explosion
He was later taken to hospital where he underwent skull and brain surgeries, before subsequently passing away on June 11, 2021, after a further deterioration of his condition.
Hardman’s family told the court that: “Joshua was a very loving, caring, kind and gentle person. He had a heart of gold. He was also an amazing dad, and it is heart-breaking that he will never reach his full potential in that role.
“His five-year-old daughter will miss out on a great deal of love and affection and the role he would have played in her life.”
An investigation led by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the partnership, W Hesketh and Sons, had failed to properly assess and plan this work activity, or to identify and implement the necessary means required to mitigate the risks involved.
The HSE also concluded that the risk of an explosion was much higher because the tyre’s wheel rim and inner tube were in a poorly maintained condition, and no sufficient assessment had been undertaken to determine whether the tyre was safe to inflate.
The prosecution was brought to court by HSE where the partnership, W Hesketh and Sons, of Grange Lane, Hutton, in Preston, pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 2 (1) of the Health and Safety At Work Act 1974, on February 4, 2025.
After the hearing, HSE inspector Anthony Banks said: “This was a tragic incident, and a much-loved young man has lost his life. It could have easily been avoided with the right controls in place.
“HSE would like to make all employers aware that, before they undertake the inflation of large commercial tyres, they need to have correctly assessed the risk and have in place the suitable controls for the task.”
