Sparking Kettering streetlight believed to be cause of hedge fire - but council findings 'inconclusive'
Evidence that a streetlight was ‘sparking’ moments before a hedge in a residential Kettering caught fire has been ignored, a homeowner has claimed.
Holly Road resident Matthew Busby had been watching TV with his son last May when neighbours raised the alarm that the boundary Leylandii hedge outside his house was alight.
Despite a quick response from firefighters, Mr Busby’s fence, hedge and car suffered ‘considerable damage’.
Mr Busby, 44, said: “It was really quite scary. I opened the curtains and my neighbours were outside. Luckily they had called the fire brigade.
"Until they arrived I tackled the blaze with a hose, to stop the fire from reaching the house, suffering minor burns in the process.”
Witnesses said they had seen sparking coming from lamppost ‘L7SCF’ prior to the incident but Mr Busby was astounded when an investigation into the incident was undertaken after all the streetlights in his road had been replaced for new LED ones.
Mr Busby said: “The fire caused considerable damage to my boundary hedge, and my car. The fire started due to a fault in the streetlight, which sparked and set the hedge alight. This was witnessed by neighbours, who called the fire service.
"Once the fire crew arrived, the blaze was extinguished and an engineer was called out to assess the damage to the streetlight and make it safe.
"He confirmed that the fire had started in the isolator box inside the streetlight."
Not wanting to claim on his house and car insurance due to affecting his insurance premiums, Mr Busby contacted Balfour Beatty, North Northants Council’s subcontractor, in order to make a claim for the damages.
They put him in touch with their insurance provider whom he claims then used a series of ‘delaying tactics’.
He was accused of not cutting back the now-burnt hedge to allow for streetlight replacement works – something he says he had done three months before.
A test report was then sent saying the streetlight was in good order – not surprising since all the lampposts in Holly Road were replaced just weeks after the fire.
Mr Busby, an administrator, said: “A letter advised that a test report showed there was nothing wrong with the streetlight - a test dated after the fire occurred, and relating to the replacement streetlight that had been installed. I was informed that the case was dismissed and no damages would be paid.”
Despite the ‘full investigation’ none of the witnesses who Mr Busby had provided in the accident report had been contacted.
He was told by the insurance company they had ‘no obligation to contact any witnesses’.
A formal complaint was also dismissed, leading to a report to the Ombudsman.
He said: “Following this I reported the case to the Ombudsman, only to discover that as I am not the policy holder, the Ombudsman will not investigate the matter."
Mr Busby has contacted Balfour Beatty once again, who refused to get involved as the case was with the insurers.
Having exhausted his options with the insurance company, ‘despairing’ of getting anywhere with his claim, he contacted North Northants Council directly.
He said: “After some chasing, I was eventually put in touch with the Highways team, who are responsible for street lighting.
"I raised a claim with them in September. I was told in December that they would respond shortly.
"Since then, despite several chase emails, I have heard nothing back. Their answer seems to be to ignore me until I go away.”
A spokesman for North Northants Council said: “Our streetlighting contract is managed by Balfour Beatty and streetlighting faults can be reported either online at Report a fault Lighting Northamptonshire or via the 24/7 telephone line (0800 8550257).
“No reports were made to Balfour Beatty of any faults at this location prior to this fire occurring.
“An insurance claim made by the resident was rejected. An investigation following the fire was inconclusive as to whether the fire actually started within the column or in the hedge.”
Mr Busby added: “I’m frustrated that they haven’t done the right thing. I wouldn’t want anyone else to go through the inconvenience.”
Report a faulty streetlight by clicking here https://forms.northnorthants.gov.uk/service/Report_a_fault_with_a_street_light.