Reid v British Telecommunications Plc, the Times, June 27, 1987

Citation:Reid v British Telecommunications Plc, the Times, June 27, 1987

Rule of thumb:How often do highway authorities have to carry out inspections of infrastructure? As a general rule, every 6 months. If a defect has been there for longer than 6 months & it causes an injury then this is a valid personal injury claim.

Judgment:

‘As against the plaintiff, however, if BT choose to rely upon inspection by the highway authority – there being of course no suggestion that they could sensibly dispense with all inspection – BT must be treated as I see it, as knowing what they should know if the inspections are properly carried out by the highway authority at the proper intervals, which in this case appears to be six monthly intervals. I would therefore hold that BT must be treated as knowing with reference to this manhole cover what they themselves would have known if they had carried out the inspections, which they were content for the highway authority to carry out, and that therefore they knew what they would have discovered if they had inspected it in March 1981 as the highway authority did’.

Warning: This is not professional legal advice. This is not professional legal education advice. Please obtain professional guidance before embarking on any legal course of action. This is just an interpretation of a Judgment by persons of legal insight & varying levels of legal specialism, experience & expertise. Please read the Judgment yourself and form your own interpretation of it with professional assistance.