DHF urges caution following a gate accident and subsequent prosecution

DHF (Door & Hardware Federation) has learned of the prosecution of a Kent-based gate company following a serious incident in February 2022 that left a lady with life changing injuries.

In 2020, Pallet Handling Penshurst Limited (PHPL), originally trading as Chase Fencing of Tonbridge, installed an automated sliding gate system at a private residential property. However, the installation was found to be unsafe. According to Trading Standards, the gate came off its guides and fell to the ground on two separate occasions. Despite PHPL returning to the address after the first incident in 2021, the mechanism failed once more. In February 2022, during the second incident, the 400kg gate fell and crushed the homeowner to the ground, causing life-altering injuries.

Both PHPL and subcontractor Derek Havill, of Harris Road, Sheerness, pleaded guilty to breaches of the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 (SMSR 2008). PHPL received a £30,000 fine and was ordered to pay £14,000 in legal costs. Derek Havill was sentenced to 200 hours of community service and required to pay £3,600 in costs.

“DHF was asked to assess the gate in question shortly following the incident and discovered a catalogue of safety and compliance deficiencies, the worst being defective travel stops,” explains DHF’s Senior Training & Compliance Officer, Nick Perkins.  “The installation company had utilised a simple guide roller (intended only to keep the gate aligned) as a travel stop which proved wholly ineffective and completely inadequate.”

Sliding gates with no (or ineffective) travel stops are the most common cause of death, injury and criminal prosecution in the gate automation industry.  A sliding gate should have purpose designed and installed physical travel stops to  completely prevent derailment in normal use, when there is a fault with a limit switch, and when the gate is being moved manually.  The SMSR require that machinery is designed to prevent harm to people both when used as intended and when subject to any foreseeable misuse. 

“Travel stops must be very robust,” continues Nick.  “They need to be able to stop the gate in its tracks when being driven under power or when being moved manually by a user; the latter being when the stop is likely to be subject to the greatest load.”

DHF guidance in the form of training and a Code of Practice (TS 013-1:2025), provides information on all aspects of powered gate safety and legal compliance.  Compliance with SMSR 2008 means:

• conducting and recording a detailed compliance and residual risk assessment;
• meeting the essential Health and Safety Requirements of the SMSR, at a level of safety that meets or exceeds that described by EN 12453:2017+A1:2021 ( EN 12453 is listed by the UK Government as a designated standard under SMSR, it refers to EN 12604 for structural integrity);
• providing a formal Declaration of Conformity with SMSR 2008 and all other applicable product safety legislation, conformity marking under SMSR 2008 (CE or UKCA);
• providing precise user and maintenance instructions, and assembling and retaining a technical file detailing how the above steps were achieved for at least 10 years.

The requirements of EN 12453 & 12604 have not altered significantly regarding travel stop provision since the first publication in 2000; the requirements are not new!

“DHF urges all manufacturers, installers, maintainers and owners of sliding gates, whether powered or manual, to ensure that physical travel stops are in place, are effective, and cannot fail under all foreseeable loads,” concludes Nick.

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