YORK magistrates have ordered a specialist garage company to pay £2,394 for an accident that injured two engineers at a city car dealership.

The court heard that Dean Chant fractured his leg and Ricky Bailey tore his knee ligaments as they worked in a fire-damaged workshop belonging to Polar Ford, of Monks Cross, on October 17, 2001.

Dawn Webster, for York Trading Standards, said Mr Chant slipped, probably on oil, as they tried to remove a car lift in poorly-lit conditions.

As he fell, he broke his leg, and Mr Bailey was injured as he single-handedly tried to hold up the 200kg pole the men were moving. Safety expert Andrew Newton, of the British Standards Institute, later told York Trading Standards the job required three men.

The engineers' employers, Straightset Ltd, of Stadium Close, Dukeries Industrial Estate, Worksop, Nottinghamshire, pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the safety of their employees by carrying out a risk assessment.

Magistrates fined them £1,000 with £1,394 prosecution costs.

For the company, Alison Shepherd said it regretted the injuries. It had relied on staff from Polar Ford, who had told it the workshop would be lit and in a clean condition. She disputed prosecution evidence that Mr Bailey had rung management at Straightset Ltd, before starting to dismantle the car lift because he was concerned about the working conditions and only received advice to be careful. Miss Shepherd said the company installed and serviced garage equipment around the country and had never been prosecuted for health and safety matters before. It had improved its safety procedures since the accident. The company was removing the lift before a major refit of the premises, which were damaged by a blaze in August 2001.

Updated: 11:34 Friday, December 13, 2002