Fines for delays caused by fires

[Northern Uproar]

Don't know where this belongs, but I'll ask anyway:

If a premises is located next to a railway line, and fire causes the trains to be delayed, i have heard that the firm can be fined based on the numbers of minutes the train is late as a result. Is this true, and is there anything similar relating to roads/motorways?

[mr angry]

"simples"...insurance

[kurnal]

Certainly not in respect of the Fire Safety Order.

I am in no way a legal expert but I would expect that if the train operating company chose to take a civil action for damages against the owner of the business they would have to prove to the satisfaction of the court that the building owner owed them a duty of care, that the owner was in breach of that duty of care and that the train operator suffered loss as a result. To do this they would have to prove also that the fire was caused by a lack of care and could have been avoided.

Caveat- This is of course my own uneducated opinion and any one would be a fool to rely on it.

[John Webb]

Network Rail can be fined by Train Operating Companies if something they do (or don't do) results in delays to one or more trains run by that TOC; the fine on NR is dependent on the size of the delay. I would expect that Network Rail does not have such a responsibility if trains are stopped by the act of a third party, whether it be an idiot crashing through a level crossing barrier or a building on fire by the track.

[SeaBass]

The following maybe a  variation on this theme but...

RRO part 2 section 8 b requires the responsible person, in relation to relevant persons who are not his employee, to take general fire precautions as may reasonably be required.

RRO part 2 section 12-1 requires dangerous substances to be eliminated or reduced as far as is reasonably practical.

So, a construction company uses acetylene gas for welding and cutting instead of using a less volatile gas. A fire starts, the acetylene becomes heated , the fire service impose a 500mm cordon which close’s ........  Oh I dunno, let’s say.......... Kings Cross Railway Station, or perhaps the M25. (It’s happened before)

The train companies operating out of KX are obliged to pay compensation to their customers for delays and cancellations (although it’s a paltry sum) and I believe that many road hauliers work under similar contracts so why shouldn’t they press for damages from the construction company?

Discuss.   

[nearlythere]

There is a legal requiement for drivers to keep their vehicles maintained. If a car breaks down on a motorway does one sue the driver of the offending vehicle for loss.
Imagine the daily cost and paperwork.

[kurnal]

Yes NT but if you had proof that the car was not maintained in a legal condition, that the driver was the person with this legal duty to maintain it, that the failure to maintain resulted in loss to you then there is nothing to stop you trying a civil claim. How you would prove this is another matter.

On the other hand if the RP of the building that had the fire was found guilty of offences through a criminal prosecution by the fire authoroity (this information would be in the public domain) and if the offences  were related directly to causing the fire or failure to mitigate its effects it might be possible for the rail operator to use this to support a claim in the civil court?

Caveat- This is of course my own uneducated opinion and only a blithering idiot would be a foolish enough to rely on it