Paving slab slip ends New Zealand dreams (From Richmond and Twickenham Times)
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Paving slab slip ends New Zealand dreams for Hampton Hill woman
6:00am Sunday 3rd March 2013 in News By Clare Buchanan
Saddened: Doreen Kingston missed out on her holiday
Retiring and jetting off on a trip of a lifetime is something many look forward to, but one woman’s retirement dreams came crashing down when she tripped over a loose paving slab.
Doreen Kingston was due to travel to New Zealand but her plans were scuppered when she fell over and broke her ankle in Links View Road, Hampton Hill, where she has lived for 35 years.
Doctors advised the 61-year-old not to go on the long-haul journey because her leg was in a cast, so she tried to make a personal injury claim but discovered because the paving slab she tripped on was less than one inch she was not eligible.
She said: “There was a lip that I tripped on but apparently it wasn’t enough that I could make a legal claim.
“I have just retired and it’s really messed up my life. If it had been someone older it could have been much worse.
“It’s absolutely appalling. I want to draw people’s attention to it and get it sorted.
“I don’t want anyone else to make the same mistake as me.”
A Richmond Council spokesman said the council had contacted Mrs Kingston and would investigate the matter.
The spokesman said: “We are sorry to hear a resident took a fall in Links View Road. We have arranged to visit the site and ascertain the cause of the fall.
“If we find that there are issues with the footway, we will of course rectify any problem as a matter of urgency.”
- More than £5m will be spent on improving roads and pavements across the borough in the next 12 months.
Richmond councillors last week agreed an annual programme of highway works, which highlights the top 65 roads and pavements most in need of general repair.
The council said the list was compiled using condition surveys and was prioritised using officer inspections and comments from residents.
It considers the condition of the street as well as the level of usage and the impact of winter damage.
The programme of works is in addition to the annual £490,000 community fund, where people nominate footpaths and roads to be improved and repaired.
Twickenham Bob says...
2:44am Mon 4 Mar 13
The council takes the short-sighted patch method of repairing pavements when what is needed is wholescale replacement as its lot cheaper in the long run. Its what they do in Hounslow, Hammersmith, Kingston, Merton etc.
Its the same with the road resurfacing program where they are straying roads with a very thin layer of tarmac - which is prone to failing within a couple of months.
I visited a friend down Montrose Avenue and was shocked at the level of shoddy workmanship - there must be 20 potholes on this stretch of recently resurfaced road. The council must be wasting money hand over fist.