The High Court found that negligence by Mr. Middleton Garden Shop Limited, trading as Mr. Middleton, caused a fire at its Mary Street premises in Dublin in February 2004. It held that the company could not rely on the Accidental Fires Act 1943 and ordered it to pay €185,000 in agreed damages to neighbouring property owner Ramblers Way Limited.
The judgment by Mr Justice Hedigan, delivered on 14 November 2012, concerned a fire at 58 Mary Street at about 11pm on 29 February 2004. Smoke and water from the fire damaged Ramblers Way’s adjoining premises at 57 Mary Street. The amount of damages was agreed between the parties.
Ramblers Way alleged that the defendant had left a convector heater switched on for two days, placed it near flammable materials and failed to unplug it. The defendant’s director, Garret Queamey, testified that he and an assistant closed the shop at about 5.30pm on 28 February. He said he returned inside after remembering the heater and switched it and its thermostat to zero. He accepted that he did not unplug it. A long-time assistant, Vera McKenna, confirmed his account.
The judgment records that paper, cardboard, timber and polypropylene bags were stored close to the heater in a confined area. The parties agreed that the fire originated with the heater. Two engineers gave conflicting explanations: one said the heater may have overheated if left on; the other said its switch mechanism may have malfunctioned. The judge said it was unnecessary to choose between those theories because both allowed that the fire could have occurred whether the heater was switched off or left on. The court considered it clear that unplugging the heater would have prevented the fire.
The heater’s manual instructed users to switch it off and unplug it when not in use, keep it away from flammable objects and use it only for domestic purposes. The judge found those and other relevant warnings had been ignored. He said heaters of this kind should be unplugged, particularly when located in a small area near flammable materials. The failure to unplug the heater, together with breaches of the other warnings, caused the fire and damage.
The court therefore found that the fire resulted from the defendant’s negligence, rather than occurring accidentally for the purposes of the Act. It ruled that the defendant was not entitled to the Act’s protection, found for the plaintiff and ordered payment of the agreed €185,000. The judgment does not specify further terms of the damages order.