Uninsured scaffolder's death leaves family with funeral bill

The family of an apprentice scaffolder who fell 6.5m to his death on a London site is facing thousands of pounds in funeral costs after the company he worked for said he was not insured.

Sunny Holland, 20, of St Mary Cray, had been working for Andrew Geer Scaffolding for eight months before his fatal fall while working on Whitehall Court, in Horse Guards Avenue, Westminster on 24 April.

Sunny’s aunt Judith Young said: “They have told us that he wasn’t insured, so I have been walking around the streets raising money for his funeral. It is pitiful really.”

A spokesman for Ucatt said the scaffolding company engaged its workers under the CIS tax scheme which meant they were responsible for their own insurance. “It is a huge problem,” he said. “We have to deal with it all the time.”

Nobody was available from Andrew Geer Scaffolding for comment. The accident has been referred to the HSE for investigation.