Celebrity hairdresser fined £40,000 for fire safety breaches
A celebrity hairdresser whose clients list includes the Duchess of Cambridge, Tara Palmer Tompkinson and Pixi Geldof has been fined £40,000 after one of his stylists suffered third degree burns in a fire at his London salon in Conduit Street.
Stylist Gail Purcell received serious burns when her skirt was set alight by a decorative candle at the Daniel Hersheson salon in London.
It is believed that Ms Purcell was forced to run to various parts of the building trying to find water to put the fire out.
No fire alarm was activated during the incident and other staff members seemed to be unaware of how to deal with the fire. No first aid was given to Ms Purcell before paramedics arrived on the scene.
Ms Purcell was taken to Chelsea and Westminster hospital suffering from third degree burns.
London Fire Brigade carried out an inspection at the property where a number of serious safety concerns emerged.
They discovered that fire doors were propped open, corridors were blocked, fire alarms were not working properly and the fire risk assessment was insufficient.
Rudan Ltd, trading as Daniel Hersheson, pleaded guilty to two offences under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and the company was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court and ordered to pay a fine of £10,000 for each of the two offences and £20,000 costs.
London Fire Brigades’s Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Fire Safety Regulation Lee Phillpotts said: ‘Business owners have a clear responsibility under fire safety law to ensure that both the public and their employees are safe from the risk of fire. This verdict sends a clear message that if these responsibilities are ignored we will not hesitate in prosecuting and serious penalties are likely to be imposed. People should always be extremely careful when using candles. You should never leave them unattended and keep them well away from any flammable materials.’
Horley Travelodge fined over £13,000 for fire safety breaches
Hotel chain, Travelodge have been fined £13,000 after breaching fire safety laws at their hotel in Horley.
The breaches relate to failings found at its 6 storey hotel in Povey Cross Road, Horley.
On discovering the breaches, fire officers immediately issued a Prohibition Notice which prevents anyone from staying at the hotel.
The hotel was fined £13,000 and ordered to pay £6,500 in costs after being found guilty of seven charges under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) order 2005.
The breaches were discovered when fire crews were called to put out a blaze on the ground floor of the hotel in September 2011.
Officers found that the fire alarm system was inadequate, staff had not received sufficient fire safety training, the fire risk assessment was insufficient and fire fighting equipment had not been maintained correctly. In addition to this, escape routes were obstructed or even blocked.
Andy Tonks from West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said: “Fortunately, due to the professionalism of our crews at the time of the incident, the fire was brought under control quickly and nobody was hurt. However, under different circumstances, the consequences could have been life-threatening. Protecting the public will always be our top priority and while we would much rather offer advice to the businesses to help them comply with fire safety law, where serious breaches are putting people’s lives at risk we will certainly seek to prosecute.”
Since the conviction, the hotel has rectified all fire safety issues and has re-opened. Bob Burgess, West Sussex County Council deputy cabinet member for public protection, said: “We would like to remind all businesses that they have a duty to comply with fire safety legislation and I hope this case will show just how seriously we take our responsibilities to protect the lives of members of the public.”
Oxford landlords fined for HMO safety breaches
Two landlords from Oxford have been found guilty of breaching licensing and safety regulations.
Mulazim Hussain and Momodu Chune were fined £6,730 and £665 respectively for the safety breaches.
Mr Hussain was the owner of a property used as a house in multiple occupation (HMO) but had failed to inform the local council of this. When an inspection was carried out, officers discovered that there were 10 occupants living in the property.
Many fire safety breaches were discovered at the property including faulty fire doors.
Mr Chune, was charged with similar offences after it was discovered he was leasing a property to seven occupants without the relevant HMO permissions. The smoke alarm in the property was not working and Mr Chune was unable to produce a gas appliance test certificate for the property.
Deputy leader Ed Turner told the Oxford Times: “The majority of landlords do a good professional job but we know in Oxford there is a minority who let their tenants down badly and sometimes put them in danger.”
Manchester off-license owner fined over £22,000 for breaching fire safety regulations
The owner of an off-licence in Greater Manchester has been fined over £22,000 for breaching fire safety regulations. The fine is the largest ever fine issued in the area for fire safety breaches.
The owner, Tahair Mahmood Arif was found guilty of 9 offences under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 at Manchester Crown Court.
Inspectors visited the property in April 2011 and discovered that fire escape routes were locked with huge piles of rubbish, there were no fire alarms and a hall way was used to store a huge amount of combustible material. Windows had also been fitted with metal shutters.
Inspectors later discovered that despite the notice, Mr Arif was still using the property.
Assistant Chief Fire Officer Peter O’Reilly, Director of Prevention and Protection said: “By ignoring fire safety, Mr Arif placed the lives of his workers and others staying on the premises at risk. Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service works hard to educate businesses about their responsibilities, however, it is the responsibility of the business to comply with the law. Mr Arif chose to ignore our notices, and I am pleased that the court has recognised that this disregard for safety is a very serious matter. We will continue to prosecute cases where businesses put profit over safety and I hope this sends a clear message to others.”
Mr Arif was fined £22,000 and ordered to pay costs of £4,195 and a £15 victim surcharge.
£21,000 fine for fire safety breach chip shop owner
The owner of the Beach Break Cafe fish and chip shop in Brighton has been found guilty of breaching fire safety regulations.
Ms Coull who owns the café was fined £21,000 after pleading guilty to breaching 6 fire safety regulations. The case was heard at Brighton Magistrates Court.
The breaches were discovered after a fire broke out in the property in 2011. The cafe had no emergency lighting and only one domestic standard smoke alarm, which was not working properly. A fire risk assessment had not been carried out in the property and staff had not been given any fire safety training.
Richard Fowler from East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said: “The public should continue to be reassured that we take any breaches of fire safety legislation very seriously.”