Lyme Regis fatal wall collapse firm fined £900,000

Thomas Telfer was described by his family as a "shining light"

A building firm has been fined £900,000 over the death of a bricklayer.

Thomas Telfer, 31, of Portland, Dorset, died from head injuries when a wall collapsed on a construction site in Somers Road, Lyme Regis, in 2015.

Capstone Building Ltd had denied two charges brought by the Health and Safety Executive at Bournemouth Crown Court.

The firm, which is in administration, was ordered to pay costs of £60,337 and a £170 victim surcharge.

Mr Telfer was working on land owned by the firm at Chatterton Heights on 2 June 2015 when the wall fell down.

An inquest jury previously decided the death was an accident, caused by the method of the wall's construction and a "lack of support".

The company was found guilty of breaching its duties to an employee and to others.

The firm's sole director, Stephen Ayles, 58, of Lomond Drive, Weymouth, was found not guilty of the same charges.

Mr Telfer's family previously said he was a "much-loved" husband and father-of-two.

"Thomas will always be a shining light in the many lives he touched and his light will continue to shine through his children," the relatives' statement said.