UK PROSECUTIONS

[Ricardo]

Date - 16 October 2009
Brigade - Devon & Somerset F & S
Premises -  Edwardian in Heavitree Road, Exeter
Defendant - Michael Scott-Hake
Fine - £3415 and ordered to pay costs of £4900
Offence -  enforcement orders breaches related to sub-standard fire doors and inadequate smoke detection in some areas.
 

[Tom W]

25th November 2009

Defendant - New Look Clothes Store

F&RS - London

Not Suitable & Sufficient Fire Risk Assessment - £250,000

Failure to provide adequate training £150,000

£136,000 costs.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8379503.stm

Largest fine under the FSO

[SmokeyDokey]

Date:23/11/09
Fire Service: London
Fine:£10,015 + costs
Defendant:Mohammed Khan (HMO Landlord)
Offence:7 under fire safety order see
http://www.london-fire.gov.uk/news/NewsReleases2009_PR1261.asp

[jayjay]

see link for latest prosecuition resulting in Jail

http://www.24dash.com/news/Housing/2010-05-10-Landlord-jailed-after-flat-fire-tenant-left-with-80-burns

[Davo]

JayJay

HSE link to same prosecution


http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2010/coi-e-05.htm

davo

[Tall Paul]

Date:                  26th April 2010
Fire Service:      Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service
Fine:                    £210,000 incl £28,000 costs
Defendant:      Cooperative Group
Offence:           Failing to keep the rear emergency exit doors unlocked for use in an emergency;
· fitting a lock requiring a security code on an emergency door between the retail and storage areas, which could not be easily opened in an emergency;
· obstructing a fire alarm and call-point in the storage area - thus potentially delaying fire alarm activation and early warning to building occupants;
· a lack of suitable and sufficient fire safety instruction and training for the store manager;
· a fire alarm system that was not regularly tested;
· having no means of early detection of fire in the retail area and thus not providing early warning to the occupants of the manager’s office for safe evacuation.

[jayjay]

Not a prosecution under the fire safety order but under CDM (not the chocolate). See link below. The implications are that if Fire Safety design was found to be poor (fire engineering) then liability may be established. This could be in addition to the responsible persons liability.
It would be interesting to know if a building inspector was involved in the construction and signed of these premises.

http://www.shponline.co.uk/incourt-content/full/architects-and-construction-firm-both-at-error-in-fatal-fall

[kurnal]

10 Aug 2010
From the FIA website and their "Midweek Messages" copied by permission.
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service has issued a reminder for businesses to ensure they comply with fire safety requirements after a restaurant owner was slapped with a fine of £15,000 for not abiding by the rules.
 

The breaches came to light after a fire started at China Wok restaurant in Stokesley, north Yorkshire, in January this year, which resulted in two people being trapped on the upper floors of the premises. Fire fighters were able to rescue them, but subsequent investigations revealed breaches of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which included a lack of a fire alarm and detection system.


Mr Shun Lin Lam was found guilty of ten breaches, including allowing people to sleep on the premises without an escape route, emergency lighting or a fire extinguisher. Prosecuting officer Karen Galloway said: "The contraventions in this case were serious and would have continued had the fire authority not acted immediately by serving a prohibition notice on the responsible person."
 

[kurnal]

27 Jul 2010
From the FIA website and their "Midweek Messages" copied by permission.

A London-based food factory owner has been prosecuted and fined after breaching fire safety regulations.

Mong Liu of New Kong Nam Food Production Company was fined more than £20,000 after pleading guilty to serious breaches of fire safety legislation following the indictment.

She admitted guilt on seven breaches of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, including having no adequate means of fire detection at her Brettingham Road, Edmonton premises.

In addition to having inadequate emergency lighting in place, a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment had also not been completed. She also had no emergency plan in place and there was no evidence of fire safety training.

[kurnal]

10 Aug 2010

The importance of businesses complying with regulations has been highlighted by the prosecution and fining of a landlord who was ordered to pay £8,500 for fire safety breaches.


Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service mounted the prosecution of Widnes businessman Antonio Meloni at Runcorn Magistrates Court after they discovered adequate fire risk assessments had not been carried out. The landlord pleaded guilty to eight counts of breaching the Fire Safety Order 2005 in his three-storey property where the top two floors had been transformed into a number of flats.


Fire services conducted a routine check of the premises and discovered blocked escape routes, locked fire escapes, as well as an inadequate fire alarm system, which prompted them to stop the flats from being used.
 
From the FIA website and their "Midweek Messages" copied by permission.
 

[kurnal]

18 August 2010
Fine and costs £10800
Wales

A landlord in Wales has been ordered to pay thousands of pounds after pleading guilty to charges relating to breaching the Fire Safety Order (2005) and other offences.

Health officers from Swansea Council Environmental discovered the eight-bedroom property at 34 Bryn Road, Brynmill, was in a poor state during a routine visit, which also revealed fire safety issues. Owner Peter Teifion Jones, who rented the property to students, pleaded guilty to 12 charges and was fined £8,500, in addition to being ordered to pay costs of £2,287 and a £15 victim surcharge.

Text copied from FIA Midweek messages with permission.

[zimmy]

Date: 19 August 2010
Fire Service: North Wales
Defendant: Mr Simon Roberts
Premises: CEX entertainment exchange
Fine: £1050 + £1000 costs
Offences: Guilty plea to 3 Charges of locking and blocking fire exits from a shop premises contrary to Art 14 of RR(FS)O

[kurnal]

27 Sep 2010

A London hotel and its manager have been ordered to pay more than £30,000 in fines and costs after being found guilty of breaching fire safety regulations.

Malik Mohammed Bashir, manager of Ventures Hotel, and Awan Investments, which owns the hotel, were ordered to pay £5,000 and £27,000 respectively.

Concerns raised by two guests prompted officers from London Fire Brigade to visit the establishment where they found violations, including blocked emergency exits, wedged open fire doors and unsuitable or insufficient fire risk assessments.

Copied from the FIA website with permission

http://www.linkedin.com/news?viewArticle=&articleID=208466532&gid=3155267&type=member&item=30665892&articleURL=http%3A%2F%2Fbit%2Ely%2F9xZvNq&urlhash=NBqo&goback=%2Egde_3155267_member_30665892

[AnthonyB]

Penhallow hotel owners face charges under Fire Safety Order

For full text please visit info4fire @

http://www.info4fire.com/news-content/full/penhallow-hotel-owners-face-charges-under-fire-safety-order

[ST1878]

Date: 14th October 2010
FRS: Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service
Defendant: Ms Christine Doyle
Premises: Wash and Press Commercial Launderette, Liverpool
Fine: £4500
Costs: £4500
Offences: Failure to carry out suitable and adequate fire risk assessment, 2 breaches of Prohibition Notice, Failure to maintain adequate means of escape for employees, Failure to provide emergency lighting, Failure to take general fire precaution measures.

3 further charges were dropped following guilty pleas from Ms Doyle to the other 6.

District Judge Harrison stated that employers could not treat their duties under the FSO as "just red tape"