Wandsworth Town hall pays £1m in compensation
A town hall has paid out more than £1m in compensation over the past four years, writes Sian Bayley, Local Government Correspondent.
The payments by Wandsworth council include instances of people tripping up pavements – with the largest payout standing at more than £54,000.
In total there have been 552 claims since 2016, although just 103 were settled with payouts.
More than 200 are still open, with some receiving interim payments, while 237 were settled with no payout.
The smallest payout was £43 for another trip in 2016.
Trips were by far the most common reason for a claim – in 417 cases.
This was followed by 35 cases of historic abuse, 18 incidents with potholes and cyclists, 17 issues with defective equipment, 11 accidents at work, and nine instances of industrial disease.
The most claims were recorded in 2016, with 170 filed in the year.
That is nearly double the 98 claims brought in 2019.
The information was revealed in a Freedom of Information request sent by the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
It showed the council paid £1,118,223.73 since 2016.
A council spokesman said: “Like all public authorities, the council receives a number of claims for different issues over the course of a year and retains insurance cover against such claims.
“In terms of trips, sometimes, despite having robust plans in place for road and pavement maintenance, the council is occasionally found to be at fault and in those cases the issues will be dealt with via our insurers.
“The number of claims has fallen over the last 10 years and not all claims will result in a payment. The council works with both the insurance industry and our partners in local government to ensure that we take all appropriate action to seek to minimise claims.”
Neighbours Kingston council paid out a similar amount in the period – £1,127,732.85 – for a total of 173 claims, of which 26 were settled.
The council would not break down the reasons behind the claims and declined to provide any extra comment.
Everyone at the South London Press thanks you for your continued support.
Former Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick has encouraged everyone in the country who can afford to do so to buy a newspaper, and told the Downing Street press briefing:
“A FREE COUNTRY NEEDS A FREE PRESS, AND THE NEWSPAPERS OF OUR COUNTRY ARE UNDER SIGNIFICANT FINANCIAL PRESSURE”
If you can afford to do so, we would be so grateful if you can make a donation which will allow us to continue to bring stories to you, both in print and online. Or please make cheques payable to “MSI Media Limited” and send by post to South London Press, Unit 112, 160 Bromley Road, Catford, London SE6 2NZ
