A railway servant was responsible for manning a station building. He left it unattended without telling his employers that he was doing so and he left a coal fire burning inside in an open stove. The stove was piled high with coal and a burning coal fell from it and set fire to the building. When the fire brigade were called by the railway authorities, they inquired whether the building was occupied and were told that it was. Consequently, on arrival at the scene, the plaintiff fireman was sent in to search the building for the servant believed to be still inside and in the course of the search he sustained the injuries which were the subject of the claim.
Held: The appeal succeeded. The employee’s negligence was responsible for the fire, but they founded their attribution of liability to the employers on the additional element of negligence on the part of the servant in failing to inform his employers that he was leaving the building unattended at a time when he was supposed to be on duty there. It was this failure, as the Court of Appeal held, which led foreseeably to the unnecessary search of the building by the plaintiff fireman and hence to his injury.
Times 02-Feb-1981
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Ogwo v Taylor HL 19-Nov-1987
A firefighter sought damages for personal injuries from the party negligent in starting a fire, suffered while attending it.
Held: A property owner owes a duty of care to firemen, not, by his negligence, to start a fire, or to create special . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Updated: 22 July 2021; Ref: scu.546996