Travelodge Fined
Mid Beds District Council took them to court after an Environmental Health Officer’s routine inspection in October 2005 found that Travelodge had failed to report at least two serious accidents in their bathrooms. In one of these a member of the public fell after using the shower in the bath and was taken to hospital.
Further investigation lead to Travelodge being charged with five offences contrary to the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 which carry an unlimited fine in the Crown Court. These included endangering public safety, failure to report accidents and not taking action to prevent these accidents occurring again.
Whilst there is no British Standard for bathroom safety Travelodge does have a duty of care and a duty to report all accidents for investigation. Mid Beds asked Travelodge to comply with their own risk assessment which identified the risk of slipping in the bath but they continued to fail to take adequate action to eliminate or minimise slipping dangers for a period of two years after the initial accident.
Mid Beds feels that Travelodge could have easily taken action to reduce safety risks in their bathrooms by carrying out the routine safety checks required by law. Each bath with defective slip resistant surface could have had this surface renewed for as little as £35.00 and the bath would have been out of use for only six hours with a minimal loss of income. For a reasonably priced additional cost another option could be to replace the bath with one where the anti-slip lasts for at least 30 years.
Travelodge initially pleaded guilty at Bedford Magistrates Court to two counts of failing to report accidents in line with the Reporting of Injuries and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) but pleaded not guilty to failing to ensure customer safety. Recently they have pleaded guilty to all charges.
Following the guilty plea, Mid Beds DC is in talks with Travelodge over making all their bathrooms safe as quickly as possible.
Councillor Budge Wells (Woburn, Conservative), Portfolio Holder for Environmental Services said: “People should feel as safe in their hotel room as they would in their home. I am pleased with the outcome of this case and feel there should be a British Standard for preventing slipping in baths.
“Customers were exposed to the risk of serious injury, disability or death and no company, however large, should take risks with their customers’ health and safety. Now Travelodge will have to take Health and Safety legislation seriously across the country to avoid further court actions.
“It was the commitment of Richard Johns, our case officer, that brought this case to its successful conclusion. He persisted in tackling Travelodge when they acted like they were above the law and continued to ignore Health and Safety regulations. I’d like to congratulate him on his tenacity.”
