Organisations must take a fresh look at their fire safety obligations after last week’s decision by the Court of Appeal to uphold the record £400,000 fine against retailer New Look.
According to Law firm Shoosmiths, the judgement suggests that in allowing fire safety risks to persist, organisations create “a risk of almost unrivalled proportions to individuals” and that this should be reflected in the level of fines.
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| 400 people were evacuated during the fire and a large part of Oxford Street was closed for two days |
The high level of the fine came as a surprise to many in health and safety legal circles, given that there were no deaths or injuries arising from the fire last year at New Look’s Oxford Street premises.
The ‘starting point of New Look’s fine was actually £600,000, but was discounted at the original hearing to £400,000 in view of factors such as there being no casualties and New Look pleading guilty. The Court of Appeal’s endorsement of that level of represents a departure from the norm in health and safety cases, where fines of £500,000 and over are reserved for cases of major public disaster.
Partner and regulatory specialist at Shoosmiths, Ron Reid, said the fine related to New Look’s failure to control risk.
“The hefty fine removes any doubt that retailers, and other organisations responsible for fire safety, cannot be complacent when it comes to complying with the regulations. This penalty was imposed because of a failure to control risk rather than as a result of injury.
“Those controlling premises subject to the regulations must review current policies to ensure compliance, and consider the structure and layout of their premises and what goes on in them.
“Whatever the opinion about the level of fine, there’s no question that managers ignoring or failing to address fire safety risk obligations now do so at their peril.”
Shoosmiths briefing on New Look judgement
