Amount paid out by Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue in compensation claims revealed
A fire and rescue service has paid out more than £80,000 in compensation claims over the past five years.
Sixty-two liability claims have been lodged against Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue since 2020 - 26 of which were settled.
The county service has paid out a total of £81,017.59 in the past five years, with the highest amount coming in 2022 at £24,337.69, according to research by No Win No Fee Solicitors Co.
Both firefighters and members of the public can be affected by the negligence of a fire service, which can lead to them lodging a claim and receiving compensation from the service.
In 2020, eight claims were made against the service, the lowest number in the past five years.
Two years later, this number increased to 15 claims.
The service has experienced a rise in claims over the past year compared to the 2022/2023 financial year, with a total of 15.
Public liability claims can arise for several reasons, with the most common being property damage in a crash in which a fire engine was at fault.
Motor claims were the most common reason with 55 claims lodged, followed by property damage, which resulted in four claims.
Firefighters based at the 38 stations across the county face numerous dangers on a daily basis, including tackling blazes, working at heights, and handling hazardous chemicals.
Due to these dangers, fire services must offer comprehensive firefighter training to their employees to minimise the risks that they may encounter during their careers.
A spokesperson for the service said: “Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue has clear policies and procedures in place that are regularly reviewed to ensure safety is at the heart of everything we do.
“Our crews are specially trained to manage risk in high-pressure life-threatening scenarios but occasionally, across the tens of thousands of call outs we respond to every year, there are accidents.
“We have insurance, like any other large organisation, for these situations.”
