Motorists could be landing themselves hefty fines and posing serious fire risks if caught doing this careless mistake, fire safety experts warn why this is a major issue.
As the warmer weather makes its way back to the UK, fire safety experts at Fire and Evacuation Services are warning UK drivers that littering from your cars “could pose a serious fire hazard, which could lead to a £6,500 fine.”
This warning comes after local fire services reported a 200% increase in outdoor fires in June. The data revealed that 85,000 areas of grassland are destroyed by fire and 40% of those fires are started because of “minor acts of vandalism like littering.” During dry conditions, grassland have an increased “risk of ignition from discarded waste.”
Fire safety expert Adam Harper from Fire and Evacuation Services shares how this careless littering can start fires and land you with hefty penalties. It comes after drivers are told they can cut car insurance ‘instantly’ by telling their insurer one thing.
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Harper states that experts “strongly advise against throwing glass bottles, cigarette butts, plastic and other items out of your car from a vehicle at any time, but especially not during hot, dry spells.” Heatwaves cause the ground to become “extremely dry and something as small as a spark or sunlight shining through a discarded bottle could easily start a fire.”
He continues that “it only takes a tiny spark for a fire to start, and smoke from roadside fires can drift across motorways” which in turn cause serious fire hazards for motorists. A Nuisance Abatement Notice can be received, and in some cases you could be “taken to court under the Environmental Protection Act 1990” If you ignore a notice you could be prosecuted and fined of up to £5,000.
Littering on the motorway can land you “an on-the-spot fine of up to £150.” If your rubbish ignites a grassland fire, the Heather and Grass Burning Code permits for fines of up to £1,000, and if there are more serious cases then it can land you in prison.
Harper says how fire services have had to handle many grass and outdoor fires recently, and these could have been prevented “if people had taken extra care in these dry conditions.” People often do not assume that “something as small as a discarded cigarette or a piece of glass can start a blaze.”
Preventable incidents like these divert emergency services from other incidents, and that can put more lives at risk. “Highways England does clear rubbish, but collecting it near high-speed traffic is dangerous work. The simplest solution is for road users to take their litter home.”
Another thing people are not aware of is when carrying litter in your car; it is advised to “place any plastic water bottles in glove compartments and out of the shade.” If “left in direct sunlight, these bottles can act like a magnifying glass, concentrating heat on one spot and potentially igniting upholstery, and creating a fire in your own car.”
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