Death crash highlights dangers of pool cars
Companies have been warned of the lasting impact of relatively simple errors in risk management after a horrific fatal accident in which a pool car known to have faulty tyres crashed and burst into flames, killing two people...
The crash, which happened last July, led to a major police investigation. As a result, the firm was prosecuted and subsequently fined £4,000 – a sum which has drawn criticism as being too lenient – for allowing a car with defective tyres to be used by its employees.
But it is the personal impact of the tragedy that has caught the fleet industry’s notice. In April, the directors of the Buxton-based private care home involved, Adventure Care, had to attend an inquest at which they spoke about their company’s fleet management procedures in front of the victims’ families.
Director Helen Slater, told the inquest at Chesterfield Crown Court: “I accept the tyres were defective and not safe.”
The pool car left the road close to where the firm is based, hit a tree and burst into flames.
Fireball
In the fireball that followed, care worker Elizabeth Fitton (23) and 12-year-old Salma El Sharkawy, who was in care at the time, were killed.
Nick Stannage, representing Ms Fitton’s family, asked Ms Slater: “On a wet day you will have been sending the vehicle out in dangerous conditions and likely to have an accident?”
Ms Slater replied: “I accept that. Not a day goes past that I’m not sorry for that.”
The inquest heard that staff carried out periodic checks on the car. A staff care worker checked the car on May 25, noting on a checklist ‘tyre depth needs looking at, maybe changing soon, two front tyres’. Days later, on inspecting the car again, she noted: ‘Two front tyres bald!!!’
Despite these notes, the tyres were not replaced. Instead, director Garry Codman, the car’s owner who admitted he had no formal expertise in inspecting tyre depths, ran his fingers over the car tyres, gave the all-clear and suggested the situation be monitored.
Mr Codman said his duties did not include dealing with the vehicles, although the car was registered in his name.
He said: “The only part I played was to check the tyres. Just a visual check, I ran my hand over them. I can’t remember what I said. I thought I said it was ready for changing but I can’t remember.”
Problems
Centre manager Lynn Allen said: “I heard there were problems with the tyres. I spoke to Garry Codman. He said he would go and have a look at them, came upstairs and said: ‘They are OK, they are on their way and need watching’. We don’t have individual risk assessments other than the checklist.”
Police collision investigator PC Richard Bell told the inquest: “It’s not possible to state categorically why the driver of the Peugeot lost control but it’s likely to have been due to a combination of factors: the weather, the road surface, the vehicle conditions, defective front tyres.” He added that the tyre tread was ‘visibly below the legal limit’.
Ms Slater said staff now used a tyre checker to measure the tread on vehicle tyres.
Coroner Tom Kelly recorded a narrative verdict that Ms Fitton and Salma died from injuries sustained in the collision.