Leaseholder ordered to pay over £3,000 by Cwmbran Magistrates’ Court

In June last year, business fire safety officers from the South Wales Fire and Rescue Service conducted an inspection at the Misbah Tandoori Restaurant. That inspection process identified inadequate fire safety provisions at the premises, which duly resulted in an Enforcement Notice being issued under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and detailing the necessary remedial work required to make the premises safe.

An investigation was undertaken by officers of the South Wales Fire and Rescue Service’s compliance team whereupon Miah was identified as the leaseholder of the premises. Throughout the investigation, requests were made for information relating to ire safety provisions within the premises. These requests were continually ignored and by the South Wales Fire and Rescue Authority had no option but to pursue the matter through the courts.

Miah was subsequently summoned to attend Cwmbran Magistrates’ Court on 24 November 2022. Miah pleaded guilty to three offences under Article 27 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and was then fined a total of £3,021 including costs.

This fine could have been avoided if Miah had simply responded with the required information. The investigation into the fire safety contraventions at the premises is still ongoing.

John Towell, head of business fire safety for the South Wales Fire and Rescue Service, said: “Our role is to enforce fire safety legislation in premises that fall within the scope of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and ensure that these premises are safe. We do so by working with businesses across South Wales to support them in protecting their businesses from risk. In this instance, we went out of our way to seek out basic information to enable us to follow legal protocols.”

Towell continued: “The court viewed this matter to be so serious that they imposed the fine. The fines and costs are solely attributed to the failure to provide information. This is a clear message to members of the business community that they need to respond to formal requests from Fire and Rescue Services.”