Pret a Manger has been fined £800,000 after an employee was left fearing for her life when she got trapped in a freezer.
According to Westminster City Council, the woman became trapped in the walk-in freezer while working at the sandwich chain’s Victoria Coach Station shop on 29 July 2021.
Dressed in just jeans and a t-shirt, she was stuck in there for two-and-a-half hours, having been forced to try and stay warm in the commercial freezer - which typically has its temperature set at -18°C – by moving around.
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However, the woman soon began to feel unwell and found her breathing became restricted, while she also started losing sensation in her thighs and feet.
The staff member had also attempted to tear up a cardboard box containing chocolate croissants, hoping to use a cover for the ventilator blowing out cold air, but found her hands were too cold to break it apart.
After finally being found ‘in a state of distress’ by a colleague, the employee had to be treated for suspected hypothermia.
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Pret a Manger pleaded guilty to an offence contrary to the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 at Westminster Magistrates Court on Tuesday following an investigation by Westminster Council’s health and safety team.
Councillor Aicha Less, deputy leader and cabinet member for communities, public protection and licensing said: “The shocking details of this case show a lapse of due care and attention.
“This incident shows that overlooking basic safety measures can have the most serious consequences.
“We hope the significant fine awarded in court acts to all businesses as a warning, preventing this from ever happening again.
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“Westminster City Council will continue to work with businesses to make sure the highest levels of health and safety are consistently maintained and educate staff in safe practice.”
After the woman was rescued, an investigation found there was no suitable risk assessment at Pret for employees working in temperature-controlled environments like the walk-in freezer.
The chain’s reporting system revealed there had been a number of call-outs relating to defective or frozen push buttons in the past 19 months.
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This included one occasion at the same remote kitchen in January the year before, when a staff member became stuck in the freezer after being unable to open the door from the inside.
At the time, the fault was due to the internal door release mechanism not working.
A spokesperson for Pret A Manger said in a statement: “We are incredibly sorry for our colleague’s experience and understand how distressing this must have been.
“We have carried out a full review and have worked with the manufacturer to develop a solution to stop this from happening again.
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“Following the incident, we have revisited all our existing systems and where appropriate, enhanced these processes, and have co-operated fully with Westminster City Council’s investigation.”
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