The plaintiff, Mr Warn, suffered a back injury whilst working for the defendant.
Mr Warn was working on a machine which bent steel reinforcing rods (or bars) into various shapes and sizes. Mr Warn was directed not to use the automated process (short bar method) but to use a procedure which required a combination of bending, lifting and twisting.
At first instance, the Court entered a verdict in favour of the plaintiff for $1,383,300.12.
The defendant appealed in respect of liability.
The trial judge found that, on the expert evidence, the work engaged in could have been done safely but the actual method being used was not safe and the risk of injury was reasonably foreseeable.
It involved a combination of bending, lifting and twisting, leading to a substantial back injury. In all the circumstances, the findings of breach of duty of care was supported by the evidence and the appeal was dismissed.
The case of Best Bar Pty Ltd v Warn [2019] WASCA 15 can be read in full here.
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