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Sale-based M&D Roof Coatings was spotted carrying out the work on a house in Lymm, Cheshire during a routine visit to the town by Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspectors last May. A prohibition notice was issued to stop work immediately, until scaffolding, edge protection or other safety equipment had been provided.
Halton Magistrates' Court in Runcorn found M&D Roof Coatings Ltd guilty of breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 by failing to make sure the work was planned and carried out safely.
After the hearing, HSE inspector John Ellis said: "It's incredible that workers were expected to power wash a roof while standing on it, without any scaffolding or edge protection to stop them falling.
"Working on a roof without safety precautions is dangerous enough, but the risk of falling was increased by the fact that moss and other detritus were being washed off the roof. One slip and the worker would have fallen to the ground, resulting in him being seriously injured or even killed.
"Falls from height are among the biggest causes of workplace deaths in the UK. Roofing firms should therefore ensure that they have safe systems of work in place to protect their employees and others."
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