Damages by gardener

RefluentBeans

Bradden said:

eddddy said:

angel198081 said:

He's now saying I accepted liability by saying I'd not mentioned it but his negligence caused this. 

Negligence is usually defined as something like this: An action – or lack of action - that falls below the standard expected of a reasonably competent equivalent person. 

So if depends on the precise facts:

• Would a reasonably competent equivalent gardener have seen the cable, and moved it or avoided it? (If so your gardener was negligent)

• But would  a reasonably competent home owner have warned the gardener about the cable - or was the cable so obvious that there was no need to warn him?

• (For example, you wouldn't warn the gardener about a tree in the middle of the lawn - because it's obvious.)

I guess the incident tripped a switch (or blew a fuse) so that was easy to put right. So the only loss is the cost of a new extension lead.

I disagree.... as others have said the cable should be buried. The home owner is responsible IMHO.

I think the poster is referring to that this gardener was probably negligent (mowing over any wire would likely be considered negligent by a paid service) but if the wire shouldn’t have been there, and shouldn’t have been switched on (as no one was using the pool) then the person commissioning the work was also negligent. 

I don’t think either party is necessarily innocent here. And it’s down to a judge to assign blame based on the evidence. It’s likely a flip of the coin, and how well either side would present its evidence that would determine the outcome. I wouldn’t go to court if I was the OP - it’s too risky. 

TELLIT01

RefluentBeans said:

I think the poster is referring to that this gardener was probably negligent (mowing over any wire would likely be considered negligent by a paid service)

The OP didn't say how long the grass was, so it's entirely possible that the cable wasn't visible.  The OP did say this wasn't their normal gardener as they weren't available.  That alone suggests it may have been a longer than normal time that the grass had been allowed to grow.

RefluentBeans

TELLIT01 said:

RefluentBeans said:

I think the poster is referring to that this gardener was probably negligent (mowing over any wire would likely be considered negligent by a paid service)

The OP didn't say how long the grass was, so it's entirely possible that the cable wasn't visible.  The OP did say this wasn't their normal gardener as they weren't available.  That alone suggests it may have been a longer than normal time that the grass had been allowed to grow.

I fully agree - I think that most of this due to the OP. But given that the OP hasn’t responded to any comments, we won’t get any answers. It also depends on how much the gardener was paid and the nature of the business. A landscaping company should be more qualified than a kid in the summer mowing lawns for £20. 

If it was a professional company, with a new person to the property and they were charging a decent portion of money, then I would expect that a property check should be carried out. But even if that was the case, there shouldn’t be a live wire running across the lawn for something not in use. So I would say the gardener, at maximum, would be liable for a new wire or extension cable. But given there’s a severe lack of facts here, hard to say. 

As I say - impossible to determine who was negligent, and to what extent under what laws, and how these different laws interplay with each other. That’s something a judge can make a ruling on based on a clear presentation of evidence from both sides. 

eddddy

Bradden said:

I disagree.... as others have said the cable should be buried. The home owner is responsible IMHO.

I was just explaining how the law works - so I'm not sure what you are disagreeing with.

I have no idea of the facts, so I can't really comment on whether the OP was negligent, the gardener was negligent, or both.



But regarding your comment that the OP should have buried the cable...

People use trailing extension leads in gardens for lots of reasons

What if somebody had laid that very same trailing extension lead in exactly the same place - because they were sitting in the garden using their laptop, and it needed charging?

Should they still have buried the cable before plugging in their laptop?


Presumably the gardener would have cut the cable whatever was plugged into the other end - a laptop, power tools, a sound system, etc. The fact that it happened to have a swimming pool filter plugged into it doesn't seem relevant.

born_again

TBH. If I was OP. I would be thankful that no injury occurred. Then apologise the gardener for not warning them.

While you are supposed to look out for dangers, a electric cable run across a lawn without any warning is a prime time event for compensation.

user1977

eddddy said:

Bradden said:

I disagree.... as others have said the cable should be buried. The home owner is responsible IMHO.

What if somebody had laid that very same trailing extension lead in exactly the same place - because they were sitting in the garden using their laptop, and it needed charging?

Then it would have been rather more obvious that there was a cable there.

bris

eddddy said:

Bradden said:

I disagree.... as others have said the cable should be buried. The home owner is responsible IMHO.

I was just explaining how the law works - so I'm not sure what you are disagreeing with.

I have no idea of the facts, so I can't really comment on whether the OP was negligent, the gardener was negligent, or both.



But regarding your comment that the OP should have buried the cable...

People use trailing extension leads in gardens for lots of reasons

What if somebody had laid that very same trailing extension lead in exactly the same place - because they were sitting in the garden using their laptop, and it needed charging?

Should they still have buried the cable before plugging in their laptop?


Presumably the gardener would have cut the cable whatever was plugged into the other end - a laptop, power tools, a sound system, etc. The fact that it happened to have a swimming pool filter plugged into it doesn't seem relevant.

It doesn't matter you can dress it up anyway you want, the OP left an unburied cable for the tradesman to  potentially electrocute himself, the regulations state it needs to be buried at least 18 inches

There is a very apt saying in law that ignorance of the law is no defence.

Its all very well saying people use extension leads etc but when you get tradesmen in, you become their employer and as such need to make sure they are safe or you are as negligent as any other employer would be.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

bris said:

Its all very well saying people use extension leads etc but when you get tradesmen in, you become their employer and as such need to make sure they are safe or you are as negligent as any other employer would be.

Is there anything to back up this statement?

I don't see that you become an employer or bare any of the many legal responsibilities that an employer has towards their employees, particularly as a tradesperson may have an actual employer, that's not to pass comment on who is responsible, merely a question of how accurate this is  

user1977

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

bris said:

Its all very well saying people use extension leads etc but when you get tradesmen in, you become their employer and as such need to make sure they are safe or you are as negligent as any other employer would be.

Is there anything to back up this statement?

I don't see that you become an employer, particularly as a tradesperson may have an actual employer, that's not to pass comment on who is responsible, merely a question of how accurate this is  

It's completely inaccurate. You don't take on any sort of employer/employee relationship. Your duties to tradespeople are no more and no less than those in relation to any other visitor to your home.

binao

angel198081 said:

Hi I had a gardener work on my property. While mowing the garden he cut through the cable of my swimming pool filter. A big bang and power out to my house.

I went out and said sorry I didn't mention that but do not believe I've accepted responsibility for his actions causing this. 

He's now saying I accepted liability by saying I'd not mentioned it but his negligence caused this. The filter is connected to a waterproof extension lead both items mentioned very clearly visible. The power was on at the time so the filter was working. I had a gardener previously who moved away who never cut through the cables and I'd never thought to mention them to him either. Advice please 

"A big bang and power out to my house."

Was the pool filter supply individually protected by an RCD?

Is the pool heated and an all year round fixture.

These are the type of questions you will be asked in court.