A Gold Coast car dealership was fined $400,000 in May 2025 after an apprentice mechanic died in an explosion inside a poorly ventilated workshop bin room — one data point in a 2025 trend of record WHS penalties, with confined spaces still firmly in regulators’ sights.
- Gold Coast Isuzu (James Frizelle’s Automotive Group Pty Ltd) was fined $400,000 on 23 May 2025 after a 21-year-old apprentice died in an explosion in an enclosed bin room.
- WorkSafe Victoria handed down $17,391,325 in WHS penalties across 137 completed prosecutions and enforceable undertakings in 2025 — 17 following a worker’s death.
- Queensland recorded the highest number of workplace fatalities of any state in 2024 (53 workers) — Safe Work Australia, October 2025.
- From 1 July 2025, the maximum penalty for a “Category 1” reckless conduct offence is $11,839,000 (corporation) / $2,368,000 (individual PCBU or officer).
- Australia recorded 29 traumatic confined space fatalities between 2013 and 2021 — three to four deaths a year on average.
- Safe Work Australia updated its Model Code of Practice: Confined Spaces in November 2024.
Why are confined space and enclosed-workspace penalties rising in 2025?
Two things happened at once: maximum WHS penalties rose again on 1 July 2025 via CPI indexation, and regulators used that headroom more aggressively. WorkSafe Victoria’s year-in-review, published 30 January 2026, recorded 137 completed prosecutions and enforceable undertakings in 2025 worth $17,391,325 combined — including a record $3 million fine, on appeal, for the state’s first workplace manslaughter conviction.
Queensland tells the same story. Safe Work Australia’s Key Work Health and Safety Statistics Australia 2025 report (October 2025) found Queensland recorded 53 worker deaths in 2024 — more than any other state, ahead of NSW’s 48. Confined spaces are a smaller slice of that toll, but their record of multiple-fatality incidents keeps them an enforcement priority.
What happened in the Gold Coast Isuzu case?
Queensland’s Office of the Work Health and Safety Prosecutor confirms James Frizelle’s Automotive Group Pty Ltd was sentenced in the Southport Magistrates Court on 23 May 2025 for breaching its primary duty under section 32 of the WHS Act 2011 (Qld).
On 22 October 2022, 21-year-old apprentice heavy diesel mechanic Kyah McDonald was tasked with de-rimming a used metal drum for storage. He used an electric handheld grinder inside the workshop’s bin room — an enclosed space housing ignitable vapours. A spark from the grinder caused an explosion. McDonald suffered full-thickness burns to 95% of his body and died of his injuries; two co-workers were also burned.
Magistrate Thompson found the risk was “obvious, foreseeable” and the steps to control it were neither complex nor burdensome. The court recorded a conviction and imposed a $400,000 fine plus costs, against a $1.5 million maximum.
The prosecution was brought under the general primary duty (section 32), not Queensland’s confined space regulation — but the failures (hazardous atmosphere, no risk assessment, no safe work procedure, no ventilation or ignition controls) mirror exactly what the Model Code of Practice: Confined Spaces targets in any enclosed workspace.
How many workers die in confined spaces, and who is liable?
Confined space deaths are rare but persistently deadly. Safe Work Australia data shows 29 traumatic confined space fatalities in Australia between 2013 and 2021 — three to four a year on average, with atmospheric hazards the leading contributor and untrained rescuers often turning single deaths into multiple fatalities (see the Norske Skog case below).
Under Australia’s harmonised WHS laws, the PCBU — typically the employer — holds the primary duty to eliminate or minimise risks, so far as reasonably practicable. Officers carry a separate “due diligence” duty; workers must follow reasonable instructions and use the controls provided. As Gold Coast Isuzu shows, a general breach of the primary duty alone can found a serious prosecution.
What penalties can employers face?
| Case / penalty tier | Year | Jurisdiction | Outcome | Penalty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Norske Skog Paper Mills — Ettamogah mill, hydrogen sulphide gas | Incident 2018; sentenced 2020 | NSW | Two workers died; early guilty plea | $1,350,000 (reduced 25% for early plea) |
| James Frizelle’s Automotive Group — Gold Coast Isuzu | Incident 2022; sentenced 23 May 2025 | Qld | Apprentice died in enclosed bin room explosion | $400,000 (max available $1,500,000) |
| WorkSafe Victoria — all 2025 prosecutions & enforceable undertakings | 2025 (published 30 Jan 2026) | Vic | 137 completed matters, 17 involving a worker death | $17,391,325 combined total |
| Category 1 offence — statutory maximum, harmonised WHS Act | Current from 1 Jul 2025 | Qld and other model-law states | Gross negligence or reckless conduct | Up to $11,839,000 (corporation) / $2,368,000 (individual PCBU or officer) |
| Industrial manslaughter — Queensland maximum | Current; Qld offence in force since 2017 | Qld (other states have separately-set maximums) | Negligently causing a worker’s death | Up to $10 million (corporation) / 20 years’ imprisonment (individual) — WorkSafe Qld |
Which industries are most exposed, and what should Brisbane employers do now?
The risk spans construction, manufacturing, mining, agriculture, transport, warehousing and utilities — anywhere work involves tanks, pits, silos, vats, sewers, ductwork or vehicle storage areas. Gold Coast Isuzu shows the risk isn’t confined to heavy industry; ordinary retail and automotive workshops carry the same hazards without proper assessment and ventilation.
With penalties rising and Queensland recording the country’s highest 2024 fatality count, businesses with workers entering, working in, or near confined spaces — or enclosed areas that function like one — should treat current training as non-negotiable. Every relevant worker should hold a current Statement of Attainment in RIIWHS202E, refreshed against the employer’s risk assessment.
FMS Training (RTO 45189) delivers RIIWHS202E Enter and Work in Confined Spaces in person at its Lawnton facility in Brisbane, backed by 1,300+ five-star reviews. See the Confined Space Entry Training course for details.
Frequently asked questions
What is the maximum fine for a confined space or enclosed-workspace WHS breach in Queensland?
As at 1 July 2025, the maximum for a “Category 1” reckless conduct offence is $11,839,000 for a body corporate and $2,368,000 for an individual PCBU or officer. Where negligence causes a death, Queensland’s industrial manslaughter offence carries a separate maximum — up to $10 million for a corporation, 20 years’ imprisonment for an individual — per WorkSafe Queensland.
What happened in the Gold Coast Isuzu confined space case?
On 23 May 2025, the Southport Magistrates Court fined James Frizelle’s Automotive Group Pty Ltd (Gold Coast Isuzu) $400,000 after apprentice Kyah McDonald, 21, died in an explosion while de-rimming a metal drum with a grinder inside an enclosed bin room containing ignitable vapours.
How many workers die in confined spaces in Australia each year?
Australia recorded 29 traumatic confined space fatalities between 2013 and 2021 — three to four a year on average — per Safe Work Australia’s Model Code of Practice: Confined Spaces.
Which state had the most workplace deaths in 2024?
Queensland recorded 53 workplace fatalities in 2024, the highest of any state or territory, according to Safe Work Australia’s Key Work Health and Safety Statistics Australia 2025 report.
Who is legally responsible for confined space safety at a workplace?
The PCBU (typically the employer) holds the primary duty of care; officers must exercise “due diligence” to ensure it’s met. Workers also have duties, including following safety instructions and using controls provided.
Does a workshop bin room or enclosed storage area count as a confined space?
It depends on design and atmospheric risk, not size alone — an enclosed or partially enclosed area not designed for occupancy that could develop an unsafe atmosphere or engulfment risk. Classifying it requires formal risk assessment by a competent person, not routine assumption.
What training does FMS Training provide for confined space work?
FMS Training delivers RIIWHS202E Enter and Work in Confined Spaces in person at its Lawnton facility in Brisbane, for workers entering or working in or near one.
How often does confined space training need to be refreshed?
Refresher timing depends on an employer’s own risk assessment rather than one fixed national rule — see FMS Training’s confined space refresher timing article for more detail.
Sources: Office of the Work Health and Safety Prosecutor (Qld) — James Frizelle’s Automotive Group Pty Ltd convicted and fined $400,000 after fatal explosion · WorkSafe Victoria — More than $17 million in penalties for unsafe work in 2025 · Safe Work Australia — Key Work Health and Safety Statistics Australia 2025 now available · Safe Work Australia — Maximum monetary penalties under the WHS laws · Safe Work Australia — Model Code of Practice: Confined spaces.
Related reading: What is a confined space? · Confined space regulations in Australia · Gas testing for confined spaces explained · Confined space entry training Brisbane.