Fire safety consultant cleared of FRA-related charges

[Tom W]

A fire safety consultant helping a hotel company has been exonerated of failing to conduct a suitable fire risk assessment (FRA), following a fatal fire in August 2007.

Martin Tricker, who was employed by Hawthorne Safety Consultancy and aided O&C Holdsworth on fire safety matters, had been accused of the breach of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

The charges were dropped due to conflicting evidence over the role that Mr Tricker played, according to trade magazine Safety and Health Practitioner.

Mr Tricker told the news provider that the verdict showed it was not part of his contract with the hotel firm to conduct an FRA.

"O&C Holdsworth … accepted that the hotel's fire risk assessment document in place at the time of the fire was produced by one of their staff members and not by my company," he said.

The hotel firm was recently ordered to pay almost £150,000 after the fire, which lead to the death of three adults


What do we all think of this?

[nearlythere]

I wonder what Mr Tricker was actually "contracted" to do?

[ahmedh]

H&S and food safety (alledgedly) there has not been any mention of fire safety related services, although this may have started soon after (subtext of the quotes from Mr Tricker) Strange that a company would contract in for H&S and not consider fire safety or that the consultant in H&S did not mention the lack of fire provision and having a suitable and sufficient assessment.

I am not particularly keen on the softly softly approach to enforcement in this case.

From SHP: "O&C Holdsworth plc admitted two breaches under the Regulatory Reform Order (Fire Safety) 2005, relating to a failure to provide proper fire detection and alarm systems, and failing to make a proper risk assessment. It pleaded not guilty to a further charge of failing to ensure the safety of relevant persons. "

I find this a little baffling since the lack of proper fire detection and alarm systems would have contributed to the 3 deaths, is it not then a given that the company have failed to ensure the safety of relevant persons? They were then fined for the admitted counts. So if i decide to deny everything, then i get let off?

"A council spokesperson told SHP’s sister site, info4fire, that it accepted not-guilty pleas on behalf of Mr McMillan and Ms Burfitt because the company “accepted responsibility by way of the failure of their systems rather than the failings of particular individuals”.

Why bother charging them in the first place? I find this laughable, so the director of the company has no responsibility for the systems installed?

O&C Holdsworth expressed its “deepest sympathies” to all those affected by the fire, before adding: “It should, however, be noted that this case was not brought by the Fire Authority against the company for actually causing the fire, or the loss of any of those lives; it was brought for technical breaches of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 to which the company pleaded guilty in March of this year.”

Bit of a cheek, imo, "just" minor technical issues.

The level of enforcement isn't working in this industry since "Over the last five years, there have been 18 fires in hotels in Newquay, equating to 28 per cent of all hotel fires in Cornwall."

Ok, think my spleen has been fully vented 


 

[nearlythere]

Did the F&RSO 2005 remove an assessment of fire risk from the HSWA?

[Meerkat]

Certainly the FSO revoked those parts of The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 that referred to Fire Safety - i.e the references to the assessment required to comply with Part II of the Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations 1997.