Centurion Fire Safety Solutions ltd

Court of Appeal upholds £400,000 fine for New Look
17 June 2010

Retailer New Look's appeal against its record £400,000 fine for fire safety breaches at its Oxford Street store was dismissed yesterday, with the Court of Appeal saying the fine was not excessive in view of the company's "lamentable" performance of fire safety duties.

In a significant judgement for responsible persons under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the court decided that the level of the fine was not excessive in relation to the seriousness of the offences, the size and nature of the company, and the risk to the public which New Look ran. The court also held that the fine was not out of kilter with those for offences under general health and safety legislation where there was a risk of death or serious injury.

The conviction of New Look last November followed a fire at its Oxford Street store on 26 April 2009, which resulted in a chaotic evacuation of some 400 people, the closure part of Oxford Street for two days, and the eventual demolition of the building. The company was subsequently prosecuted and pleaded guilty to two main counts under the Fire Safety Order - failing to carry out a suitable and sufficient risk assessment, and failing to ensure that employees were given adequate fire safety training. Other alleged detailed breaches were taken into account under these two counts.

The Court of Appeal concluded that while it accepted that the fire itself was not caused by the retailer's breaches of duty, (the cause of the fire has never been established) the offences were serious enough to create a magnitude of risk in which death and serious injury in the fire was avoided by luck.

The appeal judges also agreed with the trial judge that a starting point for a fine in these circumstances was £600,000. This was rightly reduced to £400,000 in view of nobody being killed or injured, the company pleading guilty and co-operating with the investigation at the earliest opportunity, and the company demonstrating that it had taken significant steps to remedy fire safety shortcomings across its stores.

Special risks from fire
While maintaining that the principles of setting the level of fines under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 were similar to those for the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the court said the trial judge was right to recognise "that the nature of the risk that employees and others were to be protected was the risk from death or serious injury in a fire. Fire can be indiscriminate in its effect and, in the case of an organisation which in the centre of a large city undertakes responsibility for large numbers of visitors to its premises, breach will usually be a very serious matter."

The Court of Appeal concluded: "We share the judge's view that the appellant's performance of its fire safety duties in a large department store in the centre of London was lamentable. The fines were, we recognise, severe, but they were not on our judgement manifestly excessive and the appeal is dismissed."

In a statement issued after the judgement, the retailer said:

"New Look is committed to putting the health and safety of customers and employees first. Although the appeal against the fine was unsuccessful, we note that the original 35 alleged breaches of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (RRFSO) were reduced to 2 offences and at no time has it been alleged that the company was either responsible for the fire, or that its breaches of the RRFSO caused the fire."

Tesco pays 119,000 pounds for fire safety law breaches
21 April 2010

This incident made officers concerned about fire safety in the store, so on the following day they inspected the premises. A number of breaches of fire safety legislation were found, including a failure to review the store's fire risk assessment, a failure to ensure escape routes were kept clear and inadequate fire separation due to doors being wedged open. An enforcement notice was subsequently served on 2 November 2007.

Tesco pleaded guilty to failing to keep emergency exits clear (£20,000 fine); failing to keep an emergency route clear (£20,000); two counts of fire doors being wedged open (£20,000 each) and storing flammable materials under an emergency stairwell (£15,000). Sentencing took place at Wood Green Crown Court on 20 April 2010.

London Fire Commissioner Ron Dobson said: "Fire safety is a key part of good business management and the general public should feel safe from fire when they are out shopping. London Fire Brigade will continue to take action when businesses, large or small, do not take their fire safety responsibilities seriously. Failure to comply with the law can, as this case has shown, result in a prosecution."

A Tesco spokesperson told Info4fire.com: "We take safety matters in all of our stores extremely seriously. We would like to reassure customers that this was an isolated incident and all issues at this store have been resolved."

Co-op fined 210,000 pounds after fire safety breaches
27 April 2010

The Co-operative Group - the UK's largest mutual retailer - has been fined £210,000 after pleading guilty to six breaches of fire safety legislation at Southampton Crown Court yesterday.

It follows an investigation in 2007 at one of the Co-op's Southampton branches. Officers from Hampshire Fire and Rescue found that the store had failed to keep the rear emergency exit doors unlocked, and had fitted a lock on the exit doors that required a security code - making the exit harder to open in an emergency. In addition, the fire alarm call point was found to be obstructed and the alarm had not been tested regularly, while the store's manager was not instructed in fire safety.

The prosecution under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 by Hampshire Fire and Rescue Authority also took into account three other offences at other Co-op premises in Southampton and Portsmouth.

A spokeswoman for the Co-operative Group said: "As a responsible retailer, the Co-operative Group takes health and safety issues very seriously. At the time of these incidents, the Group was introducing substantially more stringent health and safety procedures, investing heavily, both in time and money, in all aspects of fire safety.

"The Co-operative Group deeply regrets the breaches but reiterates that its rigorous measures, now established and continually reviewed in conjunction with fire authorities across the country, ensure the safety of its valued customers and staff."

In 2007, the Co-operative Group was fined what was then believed to be a record £250,000 for 13 offences under the previous Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations in six stores in East Sussex.
Hotel owner fined for five breaches of Fire Safety Order
27 May 2010

A Bolton hotel owner has been fined £5,000 and ordered to pay £10,000 costs after pleading guilty to five breaches of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

The prosecution of the owner of the Pack Horse hotel, Subhash Jajoo, followed a complaint about a blocked fire exit at the hotel in December 2008.

A follow-up inspection of the premises by Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service revealed a number of failings. These included defective fire doors, a defective call point, obstructions to the escape routes, defective emergency lighting units and fire extinguishers not being maintained properly.

Cllr Paul Shannon, vice chairman of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority said: "We welcome the clear message from the courts that action will be taken against those businesses that neglect fire safety and thereby risk the public's safety. The Fire Authority is focussed on helping businesses operate safely and taking action when they don't."

Speaking after the case, Dr Jajoo told the Bolton News: "I am not happy with the prosecution costs and I don't think this should have come to court. The points raised were rectified in a matter of days and I did my best."
Pub landlord fined for fire safety breaches

March 10
A former pub landlord has been ordered to pay £16,015 in fines and costs after pleading guilty to breaches of fire safety legislation.

Bhupinder Singh Mann was found guilty of 16 contraventions of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 at Isleworth Court, on Friday 26 February.

It comes after an investigation into conditions at The Star, a pub that Mann ran in Hillingdon, London.

Safety officers from the London Fire Brigade found a number of fire safety failings on the premises, including no fire extinguishers, no emergency signage and no fire risk assessment.

Warnings were issued, but despite repeated visits in 2008 and 2009 and the issuing of an enforcement notice, Mann failed to comply with most of the requirements. Eventually fire officers served a prohibition notice in early 2009 to stop guests or staff using the upper floors of the pub because the risk was so serious. When this was again ignored, fire officers recommended that the owner of the premises, Punch Taverns, physically bar access to the upper floors.

Following the conviction, London Fire Brigade's assistant commissioner for fire safety regulation, Steve Turek, said: "Ensuring you know about fire safety law is not an option - if you are the person responsible for a premises it is a necessity. If people do not adhere to the legislation, then as shown in this case, we can prosecute."

The manager of The Star was also found guilty of breaching the Fire Safety Order, and was ordered to pay £1,015 in fines and costs on 7 December.

Hotel Company convicted of fire safety offences

March 2010
A company that owned a London hotel has been ordered to pay more than £21,000 in fines and costs after pleading guilty to six offences under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

Malfax Investments Limited, which owned the Averard Hotel on Lancaster Gate in Bayswater, was sentenced this week at Westminster Magistrates Court.
The hotel was inspected by fire safety officers in April 2009, when they found a number of failings including inadequate fire detection and alarm system, problems with the external means of escape and inadequate and defective fire doors. As a result of these deficiencies, the officers issued an enforcement notice detailing the issues and when they needed to be resolved.

The company disclosed a fire risk assessment that was prepared in January 2008. Although it detailed a number of failings and advised steps they needed to take to address them, said London Fire Brigade, the company failed to act on the findings and implement any of the actions required.

The hotel closed shortly after the enforcement noticed was issued.
"The general public should feel safe from fire when they are staying at a hotel and the responsible person must make sure their premises comply with the regulations," said London Fire Brigade's assistant commissioner for fire safety regulation, Steve Turek."All premises owners and operators must undertake a fire safety risk assessment. Although this was completed in this case, it is no use if the responsible person does not act on its findings."