Council prosecution secures £90,000 fine and costs in go-kart death case
A Barking and Dagenham Council prosecution has seen a go kart company ordered to pay almost £120,000 over an accident that saw a driver strangled by her own clothing.
In August 2021, 15-year-old Ruwaida Adan died after her hijab got caught in her go kart's axle and suffocated her.
Ms Adan was wearing her hijab despite the firm's health and safety policy and procedures stating that "loose clothing" was to be removed and that checks were to be carried out by race marshals before racers were seated in the karts.
She was able to start racing with her hijab underneath the race suit provided by the venue.
Posters were displayed in the venue that warned drivers should remove loose clothing and long hair be tied back and tucked into a race suit.
However, racers' attention was not drawn to the posters and no mention of removing loose clothing or tying back long hair was made in the pre-race briefing given to the party, nor were they told of the inherent risks posed by the karts, including the risk of entanglement, the council argued.
In addition, the kart that Ms Adan was driving was missing a guard that should have covered the rotating rear axle gear and drive belt.
An investigation carried out by the Barking and Dagenham's Health and Safety Officers found that while appropriate safety procedures were articulated in the company's health and safety documentation, there was a failure to ensure and monitor that they were consistently implemented.
The case was heard on Wednesday (3 April) at Romford Magistrates' Court following the company's guilty plea at a previous hearing on 14 March.
District Judge Susan Holdham ordered Capital Karts Trading Limited, of Unit 1 Rippleside Commercial Estate, Barking, Essex IG11 0RJ, operating as Capital Karts, were ordered to pay a fine of £90,000, costs of £29,021 and a Victim Surcharge of £190, totalling £119,211.
Capital Karts Barking closed in June 2022. Capital Karts is now located at Canary Wharf, although it is operated by Capital Karts London Limited, another company within the same group.
Gary Jones, Operational Director for Enforcement, Regulatory and Community Safety at Barking and Dagenham Council, said: "It's clear that not enough was done to prevent this tragic accident, and I welcome the result of this case. Health and safety management has to be real and demonstrable. The quality of written manuals and procedures is irrelevant without proper systems to ensure that the implementation and monitoring of measures to control risks.
"I hope this sends a strong message to similar businesses on how important it is that they implement measures to make sure that they have in place proper systems to ensure that something like this never happens again."
Following the hearing, Ruwaida Adan's mother expressed "heartfelt gratitude to the presiding judge, and to Barking and Dagenham Council for bringing this prosecution".
Capital Karts has been approached for comment.
Adam Carey
