Hoteliers are being warned to check fire safety equipment and procedures at their premises after The Belfry Hotel in Cheshire was fined £75k for breaching fire safety codes.
A routine visit by firefighters to the 160-bedroom Hallmark Hotel in April 2008 revealed such severe safety issues that Fire Safety Officers closed the hotel immediately.
They found numerous faulty smoke detectors and substandard fire exits, while the hotel’s third floor failed to contain a single working fire alarm. Staff were also found to have not been properly trained in fire safety.
Lee Shears, manager for Community Fire Protection at Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: “Fire safety is a key part of good business management and the Hallmark Hotel Group showed little or no regard for the safety of their guests or employees and the result was a prosecution.”
The Belfry Hotel pleaded guilty to three counts of serious breaches of the regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order at Chester Crown Court on Monday (4 October), paying £25k for each offence and £53k in costs.
Substantial risk
Judge Elgin Edwards told the court that the legislation is there to ensure the protection of the public.
“For people who run hotels, fire security is particularly important,” he said. “This company carried on trading and taking guests when quite clearly these guests were put at substantial risk.”
Shears warned that while the fire service is happy to lend help and support to operators in order for them to function safely, they would continue to take legal action if businesses fail to take fire safety responsibilities ‘seriously’.
The Belfry Hotel was given permission to reopen four days later after fixing fire safety problems and installing the required equipment.