Legal
a disused quarry. They had erected signs saying ‘dangerous waters no swimming’ and handed out leaflets warning people of the danger of swimming in the lake. An 18-year-old tragically broke his neck after diving in the lake. The House of Lords dismissed his claim because diving carried an inherent risk of injury, and the claimant had chosen to dive voluntarily as a person of full capacity. It seems it will be rare for an occupier to be under a duty to prevent people carrying out activities with an inherent risk if they choose to do so. Erecting fences to prevent access is an advisable precaution to support any defence. In Edwards v Railway Executive (1952) the claimant, aged nine, climbed through a fence onto the railway tracks and was injured by a train. For many years the railway occupier was aware that the fence was broken and children climbed through. It was found the railway occupier was not liable as it had repaired the fence as soon as it was aware it was broken on each occasion. The court held on those facts that mere knowledge of intrusion onto premises did not constitute to children a licence to enter, and occupiers are not bound to take every possible step to keep intruders out. This case pre dates the 1984 act which imparts a degree of ‘reasonableness’ to the test. The outcome today may still have been the same, provided inspections were carried out with sufficient frequency and repairs were not delayed.
Children’s ingenuity TOCs should be primed to ‘never underestimate children’s ingenuity in finding unexpected ways of doing mischief to themselves and others’. In the case of Jolley v Sutton London Borough Council (2000) the House of Lords was asked to decide whether the council was liable when a child was rendered paraplegic after playing in a derelict boat, which fell on top of him. The boat had a sticker reading: ‘Danger do not
‘The court found that at the age of 13 the claimant was fully aware of the risk he was running’
touch unless you are the owner.’ Local residents had complained about its unsafe and unsightly condition. It was found that the risk that children would meddle with a derelict and rotting boat and injure themselves was foreseeable and could have been avoided, at little expense by removing the boat. The boy was 14 and there was a discount of 25 per cent for contributory negligence. Occupiers are responsible for ensuring their premises are reasonably safe to both visitors and trespassers. To ensure they protect their position, Tocs and occupiers of railway depots should be able to demonstrate pro-active site management
including the following: • Appointing a site manager; • Removing stabled wagons from live overhead electrical cables and ensure they are secure;
• Ensuring all fencing is adequate and well maintained; • Ensuring there are clear warning signs of known dangers; and
By implementing these measures and achieving good risk management, Tocs should be placed in a stronger position for defending claims occurring as a result of vandalism and trespass.
Chris Price is a partner in the Insurance Law Department at Langleys Solicitors LLP.
Products and services iKONCIERGE from BE INFRATEK PULS UK LIMITED
If you would like your company featured here, call Doug Lewis on 02031 501 691 or email:
doug@railpro.co.uk
HEALTHCARE CONNECTIONS
• Where there is a history of vandalism, having frequent daily patrols of static wagons and erecting CCTV.
PULS UK Launches New High-Efficiency Convection Cooled 500 watt Power Supplies
iKoncierge - smart visitor information system, is available to major railway networks free of cost, on revenue sharing basis. iKoncierge is an advertisement funded multilingual interactive information system for public transportation system (train & underground stations/airports etc). It helps visitors find information about public transport routes, station facilities & shops, local tourist attractions, restaurants, hotels, business centers etc in various languages in a user-friendly interface. iKoncierge is available in a number of screen sizes and customized designs, to suit different interiors of stations. BE Software Solutions Ltd is a pioneer in creating business solutions, by combining cutting edge software development expertise with application of latest hardware in the fields of tourism, retail, urban transportation, Highways and parking industries. Current installations include a major International Airport, five star hotel, shopping mall and a big city under- ground system. In the past, they have installed at a major international sporting event. iKoncierge (pronounced i-concierge) & BE-Infratek are brands of BE Software Solutions Ltd Tel: 020 7669 4745
info@beinfratek.com www.beinfratek.com
DIN-rail power supply manufacturer PULS UK has announced the launch of its new high-efficiency 24V-20A and 48V-10A units. The CPS20 (241 and 481) use new topology to offer customers many features allied to the high-quality and outstanding reliability expected from PULS at a very competitive price. The CPS20s deliver 94% efficiency and are packaged to take up only 65mm on the DIN-rail. PULS has ensured low losses even at low input voltages and low loads and this is expected to become the industry benchmark for all 500 watt power supplies. New features make the CPS20s ideal for harsh environments, combining conformal coated variants with high-efficiency and reliability. Other features include screw terminals - often favoured by engineers - negligible inrush current, allowing the use of smaller wires and fuses, a Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) of 537,000 hours, life expectancy of 168,000 hours and PULS’s unique Bonus Power® system delivering 20% current reserves to aid motor or inductive load start-up. The CPS20.241 is available ex-stock from PULS UK; the 48V version CPS20.481, is expected in September. Call the PULS technical support team on 0330 999 9988.
From bespoke medicals and drug & alcohol screening, to health surveillance programmes, medication checking and absence management, Healthcare Connections provides a flexible occupational health service. With the inevitable disruption to road and rail infrastructure in and around London and other Olympic locations that the 2012 Olympic Games will bring, Healthcare Connections have taken steps to ensure that their usual high standards of service delivery are met as far as is possible during the Games. Over the last six months, their Olympic Preparedness Group has been meeting to develop an in-house strategy for business continuity during this period. Their team of medical professionals around the country will be working as normal and their nationwide medical rooms will be open for clients, unaffected by the Olympics. Companies facing forced downtime can look to gear up their medical scheduling before or during the Games, so that they can hit the ground running once again after the Closing Ceremony.
Contact the National Operations Sales Team for more information. Tel: 08456 773002
www.healthcare-connections.com
AUGUST 2012 PAGE 35
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