Bicester fire inquiry could cost council £500,000

The ongoing investigation into a fire at a business park that killed three people could cost a local authority an estimated half a million pounds.

Firefighters Martyn Sadler, 38, and Jennie Logan, 30 were both killed in the blaze that engulfed Bicester Motion on 15 May last year, alongside father-of-two Dave Chester.

The cause of the fire, which also left two firefighters seriously injured, is currently being investigated by Thames Valley Police and the Health and Safety Executive.

Oxfordshire County Council said it had so far spent £90,000 on inquiries, with the authority expecting that cost to rise to £500,000 once the investigation is complete.

It makes up a large proportion of the £800,000 expected council overspend on its fire and rescue services.

At a cabinet meeting earlier this week, the council's finance chief Dan Levy said the overspend was "almost entirely related to the very tragic Bicester motion incident".

He added that the figure "may increase further" due to the "complexity" of the investigation.

The council finance report said the remaining £300,000 overspend had been due to "higher demands including the Bicester Motion fire incident".

These funds had been diverted from the on-call firefighters' budget.

"This comes at extra cost so as to avoid impacts on the day-to-day service fire and rescue provides to the public," a spokesperson for the authority said.

"We are working closely with Thames Valley Police under formal information‑sharing arrangements, with the police retaining primacy at this time.

"When the investigation concludes the results will be shared."

The council did not confirm how long the investigation was expected to take.

The Health and Safety Executive said it would not provide any details on costs, and that it had nothing further to add, when approached for comment.

Thames Valley Police was also contacted for a comment.

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