Takeaway owner receives hefty fire safety fine

A  takeaway owner in York has been ordered to pay over £7,000 by magistrates, after North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service serious breaches of  fire safety law.

On the 25th May 2017, fire safety inspectors visited a takeaway shop, Mr Happy Oriental Restaurant and takeaway, on Blossom Street, York.

The inspecting officers found that although there were people living and sleeping on the first and second floors of the building, there was not a functioning fire  alarm in the premises, and no  there protected fire escape route. The Responsible Person, in this case the business owner, had not carried out a fire risk assessment.

If a fire had broken out , the people living there could very easily have become trapped inside a burning building.

A Prohibition Notice was served under the Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order 2005, prohibiting anyone from  sleeping  on the premises.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service were of the opinion there was a risk to life of death or serious injury in the event of fire such that prosecution was considered the appropriate action to take.

At York Magistrates Court on Tuesday 31st July 2018, Mr Kheng Chooi Koay the owner of Mr Happy Oriental Restaurant and takeaway, pleaded guilty to three contraventions of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 which included breaching the Prohibition Notice served on the premises.

Mr Kheng Chooi Koay was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay £1,989 in costs with a surcharge of £170. A total cost of £7,159