Hotel owners fined for fire safety breaches

The owners of a Cornish hotel have been fined for breaches of fire safety following a blaze which killed three people.

The fire, at Penhallow Hotel in Newquay in August 2007 completely destroyed the property and was described by firefighters as “the worst British hotel fire in 40 years”. Now the owners, O & C Holdsworth, have been fined £80,000 and ordered to pay £62,000 in costs after the Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service revealed breaches of fire precautions including the fact that a fire risk assessment had not been carried out in accordance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

A spokesperson for Cornwall Fire and Rescue Services said: “We hope that this sentence will send out a very clear message to the hotel and leisure industry where sleeping accommodation is provided of the importance of adhering to fire safety legislation and ensuring the management of fire precautions is a high priority.”