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I guess this query is to do with personal injury, or personal loss. I'd really appreciate any advice regarding what steps (if any) to take next
Basically, my car and all contents ( a lot of expensive work gear) was destroyed in a fire at reading festival. Hopefully my insurance will cover me getting a new car, but I know it doesn't cover the amount of stuff I had in the car. Do I have a case to hold the festival organisers responsible seeing as I paid to use the festiva's secure car park?
The fire was caused by people having a BBQ in the car park and it getting out of control. The official poilce line is that the people had their BBQ, then thinking they had put it out, went into the festival grounds. The BBQ wasn't properly extinguished and therefore set the floor on fire (it was a hay field) which then set a load of cars on fire. My annoyance is that considering the amount of stewards hanging around the car park telling people where to park, how can someone be allowed to have a full on BBQ without it being deemed as a fire hazard and put out before it got out of control. Considering there were a few thousand cars all parked closely together in a hay field do I have a case to claim they were negligent and I should be re-imbursed for anything I have lost?
Sorry for long winded post, I will repay any decent advice with anything you so desire. I'm an expert in fitness and nutrition so will gladly set you up a health regime of excellent quality!
One would assume that you are unable top identify those who actually held the BBQ that they negligently failed to extinguish properly.
The individual stewards are probably not liable, unless their instruction include overseeing or preventing BBQ (or open flames).
As you paid to park 'securely', I would suggest that the car park owner and/or the company responsible for running the car park may well be negligent in not preventing the use of open flames on a hay field. Mind you, if it was cut hay, why was it not gathered before people were allowed to park over it and contaminate it. Furthermore, if anybody can be bothered to read their car handbook, it probably contains a specific warning about parking in areas of long, dry grass as this can be ignited by the extremely high temperature of the catalytic convertor.
It would appear that the responsible party did not a) possibly abide by licensing restrictions for a car park - if they exist, or b) failed to carry out proper risk assessments, or c) failed to act upon those risk assessments, or d) failed to instruct their employees of the need to prevent the use of open flames.
I would total up the cost of your losses and write to the company concerned, the festival organisers and the land owner to see what response you get. Make sure you use the word 'negligence'. Regardless of any terms and conditions of parking (like "Cars parked at owner's risk") they cannot declaim negligence
Lastly, can you not claim any of this on your household contents insurance?
Thanks for the reply. I may be able to do a claim on househld insurance, which would need an excess paid first, so I'm not so willing to go down that route yet. I shall write to the festival organisers and see what they say for themselves.
Ask for your claim to be passed on to their insurers or at least notify them of your intended claim. If they dont then the insurers may decline liability as they were told about it when the claim was first raised.
I feel it is quite forseeable that driving and/or parking an on road vehicle on a field covered in dry hay/straw would cause a significant risk of fire. I'd hold therefore that you were in the region of 50% negligent with whomever had arranged car parking, and hadn't taken reasonable steps to manage the risk of fire.
I feel it is quite forseeable that driving and/or parking an on road vehicle on a field covered in dry hay/straw would cause a significant risk of fire. I'd hold therefore that you were in the region of 50% negligent with whomever had arranged car parking, and hadn't taken reasonable steps to manage the risk of fire.
You miss the point. this particular fire was caused by a BBQ not being fully & properly extinguished.
An open flame should never have been allowed in the circumstances described.
You miss the point. this particular fire was caused by a BBQ not being fully & properly extinguished.
An open flame should never have been allowed in the circumstances described.
I haven't missed the point at all - regardless of how the fire started the OP still holds a degree of contributory negligence because it is forseeable that, in the circumstances, a fire could be caused.
The fact that the fire did not occur in the most forseeable way does not mitigate this contribution to the negligent act.
I think you might have a case against the organisers of the festival, who's job it was to assess the risk of fire on all sites, not just the car park. This sounds like a breach of health & safety and I would go it it from this angle first.
Whatever were they doing allowing a BBQ to be lit on a hay field is beyond me.
Claiming losses due to negligence?
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Originally Posted by seftonview
