Heathrow firm warned about safety before worker sucked into baggage machine
A Heathrow baggage-handling company knew its conveyor belts were potentially dangerous months before one of its staff was sucked into one, leaving her in a vegetative state.
Menzies Aviation privately discussed fitting sensors to its machines after a staff member got his hand and arm caught at Gatwick airport in July 2022.
However, the change had not been implemented by February 2024, when 52-year-old mother-of-two Jasbir Sahota was dragged into the same type of ramp at Heathrow, inflicting devastating brain and spinal injuries.
The chain of events emerged at a hearing in the High Court this week, where Ms Sahota’s family are battling Menzies for urgent help towards the victim’s treatment costs, which will run into the millions if she survives in the long term.
In court documents, it was claimed that there had been a number of safety incidents related to use of the baggage machines.
Ms Sahota’s lawyers claimed that the global aviation company had delayed proceedings by failing to reveal crucial evidence regarding the earlier safety incident and subsequent investigations into them.
The omission earned an apparent rebuke from the judge, Mrs Justice Yip, who said: “I find it almost impossible to understand the approach taken by the defendant and the defendant’s solicitors.”
Treated ‘like a number’
Without significant extra money, Ms Sahota faces being moved to a nursing home, with no immediate access to urgent medical care.
However, her family wants their loved-one transferred to the private Wellington Hospital instead, where they believe she stands a better chance of survival and has a chance of some degree of rehabilitation.
They have previously accused Menzies of “abandoning” them since the accident, and are now seeking £500,000 in interim payment from the company.
Ms Sahota’s two children, Nina Haer and Harman Sahota, have described the company as treating their mother “like a number, rather than a valued employee”.
Menzies denies liability for the accident and said Ms Sahota should not have been in the vicinity of the ramp and should not have been wearing a scarf that ultimately dragged her into the machine.
A dispatcher at the time of the accident, she had worked at Heathrow since she was 22.
Her main role was to turn aircraft round efficiently by overseeing the safe loading and unloading of baggage.
Chain of correspondence
With cargo handling, ground operations and passenger services at aircraft across the world, Menzies’s global revenue grew by 10.7 per cent to £1.68 billion last year.
After the incident at Gatwick in 2022, the company entered into a chain of correspondence with the conveyor-belt manufacturer, about how to make them safer.
This included retrofitting a sensor onto the equipment that would detect foreign objects and automatically shut the machine down, an intervention that was estimated to cost less than £167 per unit.
According to the court documents, Phil Lloyd, a senior vice-president at Menzies, was centrally involved in these discussions.
He also took the lead in liaising with the Sahota family in the aftermath of the accident.
Despite this, they say they were not informed of the machines’ history of accidents and the attempts to put them right.
No mention of Gatwick incident
“It is very surprising that no mention of the incident at Gatwick was ever made to the claimant’s family by the defendant’s senior employee, Mr Phil Lloyd, or to the claimant’s solicitors by any of the defendant’s legal team,” the documents state.
They add: “Mr Lloyd was himself involved in the correspondence to fit a sensor.”
Menzies’ solicitors, Keoghs, deny any failure in disclosing the correct evidence and said its task was hampered by the timetable and terms imposed.
A Health and Safety Executive investigation into the Gatwick incident found that there was no breach of legislation in either the design and maintenance of the machines.
Ms Sahota’s doctors have issued a “do not resuscitate” order and recommended she is not moved to intensive care if she deteriorates, such is the gravity of her condition.
However, the family believes she has not been assessed properly, and that she is capable of responding to stimulation and tracking the movements.
Elizabeth-Anne Gumbel, KC, representing Ms Sahota, told a hearing at the High Court: “She has survived a lot of infections. The family’s view is that she’s improving.
“The longer she survives, the more positive the prognosis is going to be.”
‘In a precarious state’
Jill Greenfield, who is leading the litigation at Fieldfisher’s solicitors, said: “We have pushed hard to get Jasbir’s case heard in court as quickly as possible because there have been unnecessary delays in getting to the facts behind the circumstances of this accident. Meanwhile, her life is in a precarious state.
“Time is absolutely crucial in getting Jasbir specialist neuro treatment, not least since her current hospital has implemented a ceiling of care above which they can’t treat her.”
The trial is expected to take place in May next year.
Menzies has previously said: “An active investigation is underway following a serious incident involving a Menzies employee at Heathrow Airport earlier this year. As this is ongoing, we cannot provide any further details at this time. Our thoughts are with our colleague and their family.”