Fatal accident highlights need to understand contracts
Failing to assign ‘ prime contractor’ responsibilities could have left Campbell liable for compensation in incident at holiday home
An accident in which a roofer was killed when he fell through the skylight of former premier Gordon Campbell’s vacation home is highlighting a littleknown piece of contract law that has huge implications for homeowners.
In a report released publicly Monday, Worksafebc said Campbell, as the homeowner, became the “prime contractor” because he failed to assign in writing that role to the general contractor whose company was renovating his Sunshine Coast home last July.
As a result, Campbell had the legal responsibility for coordinating and establishing compliance with health and safety requirements.
And in the case of the accident, he would have been liable for compensation in the death had the worker not been registered with Worksafebc, which he was.
The accident occurred when David Lesko, an employee of Weather Tight Supplies Ltd., lost his balance and fell nearly 5.4 metres ( 18 feet) to his death. He was wearing a fall- arrest harness but had not secured it to an anchor point. Three other employees of the company were also on the roof, all without fall-arrest equipment.
Weather Tight was registered with Worksafebc, which had cited it several times in the past for not complying with its acts and regulations.
Worksafe spokeswoman Donna Freeman said Monday that Campbell was not penalized but was given a written order of what he must do to comply in future as a prime contractor. Worksafe is also considering levying a penalty against Weather Tight, she said.
Paul Devine, a lawyer with Miller Thomson who specializes in health and safety law, said the accident illustrates how little homeowners know about their legal responsibilities when they hire contractors to work around their home.
Most people don’t realize they should check to make sure the company they hire is registered with Worksafe, or that unless they have signed over the role of prime contractor, they are financially responsible if an unregistered worker is hurt on the job.
“Most homeowners would go out and hire a contractor and assume they would bring in all the subtrades and make sure they are looked after,” he said.
“The problem is under the legislation it says you have to assign a prime contractor in writing and if you don’t, the owner becomes the prime contractor. I don’t know that most people think past ... whether this person is going to do a good job or the cost of it, rather than about the liability if somebody is injured. Generally speaking, I don’t think homeowners think in those terms.”
In Campbell’s case, three separate companies, all registered with Worksafe, were working on the project. But because no one was assigned as prime contractor, the role of ensuring they all complied with health and safety regulations fell to Campbell, which investigators said he was unaware of. Campbell was not on the site when the accident occurred.
Freeman said because Weather Tight was registered, Worksafe covered the workers’ compensation insurance for Lesko. But she said in cases where contractors aren’t registered with Worksafe, homeowners are fully liable for any compensation costs.
Campbell, who is now Canada’s high commissioner to Britain and lives in London, did not return a telephone call asking for comment.
Devine said homeowners, whether they are hiring one or more contractors, should always assign the role of prime contractor to one company. It may be that employees working for a roofing company the homeowner has hired are independent contractors who don’t have Worksafe registration, he said. In the case of an accident, the homeowner would become liable for those independents.
Freeman said homeowners can check Worksafe’s online registration database to ensure a contractor is registered. If it isn’t, the homeowner can pay a modest assessment fee, based on a formula of 5.19 per cent of payroll or labour costs, to make sure workers on their property are covered.
Freeman cited two examples: if labour costs on the reno job are $ 20,000 for instance, registration insurance premiums would be $ 1,038. A job that required $ 40,000 labour costs, registration insurance premiums would be $ 2,076.