A plumber has won a significant compensation claim after being attacked by a homeowner's son during a plumbing repair visit. The court found the plumber's employers liable for failing to protect him from a known risk of aggression.
A plumber, Thomas Browne, has been awarded compensation, potentially up to £200,000, following a violent assault by the son of a homeowner during a routine plumbing visit.
The incident occurred at a property in Hammersmith while Mr. Browne was attempting to assess a long-standing issue with the central heating system. The homeowner’s son, reportedly frustrated with the repeated problems and lack of resolution, became aggressive towards Mr. Browne. The situation escalated when Mr. Browne attempted to contact a colleague for advice, and was subsequently blocked from leaving the property.
He was then subjected to verbal abuse, punched twice in the face, and suffered a severe hand injury when the son forcefully slammed a door on it, crushing his hand. The case, heard at Central London County Court, centered on the responsibility of Mr. Browne’s employer, K&T Heating Services, and later Morgan Sindall Property Services Ltd, for failing to adequately protect him from a known risk.
Evidence presented during the four-day trial revealed a history of aggressive behavior and threats directed towards engineers visiting the property. Colleagues of Mr. Browne had previously reported instances of hostile interactions with the homeowner’s son, raising concerns about the safety of lone workers. The court heard that the company’s system for logging and addressing these incidents was ‘sloppy’ and inadequate, leading to a failure to warn Mr. Browne about the potential danger.
Helen Nugent, representing Mr. Browne, argued that a risk of harm was ‘reasonably foreseeable’ given the circumstances and that the employer should have taken steps to ensure his safety, such as sending him with a colleague. Judge Lawrence Cohen KC ruled in favor of Mr. Browne, finding K&T Heating Services and Morgan Sindall Property Services Ltd liable for his injuries.
The judge highlighted the systemic failures within the company’s incident reporting system and expressed a stronger belief in Mr. Browne’s testimony and that of his witnesses compared to the testimony of the line manager. While the claim also included negligence allegations against Hammersmith and Fulham Council, the judge cleared the council of any liability, stating that any failures in logging past incidents did not directly contribute to the assault in March 2020.
The amount of compensation Mr. Browne will receive is yet to be determined and will be decided at a future hearing, unless an agreement is reached. The awarded compensation could reach up to £200,000, reflecting the physical and psychological trauma he endured as a result of the attack. Mr. Browne described feeling shaken and violently ill after the ordeal, emphasizing the lasting impact of the incident
Plumber Assault Compensation Violence Workplace Safety Negligence Hammersmith Court Case
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