New laws pull plug on Xmas
Humbug ... Amy outside shop
HIGH streets face a Christmas blackout because of health and safety rules, business leaders warned yesterday.
The demands of insurers mean festive lights are simply too expensive to put up.
They say illuminations should be erected by trained professionals using a hydraulic platform, rather than ladders.
Fittings should undergo a rigorous “pull test” to ensure they can secure cables and many councils are even ordered to individually test every bolt with a pressure gauge.
The Federation of Small Businesses said costs for towns can hit £25,000 a year.
Spokesman Stephen Alambritis said: “The festive period is looking darker and bleaker year on year.
“Christmas lights excite consumers and make them want to go to the high street. Spiralling costs and exhaustive safety concerns are ruining the festive spirit for everyone.”
In CLEVEDON, near Bristol, illuminations have been scrapped after the council said they could no longer be fixed to lampposts or buildings – leaving traders such as Amy Bennett, who runs a chocolate shop, fed up.
BODMIN in Cornwall looks like being left in the dark too. Council spokesman Kim Roscoe said: “Health and safety requirements have greatly increased the costs.”
Traders in DEREHAM, Norfolk, have had to appeal to the public to cover the £10,000 display.
In SANDWELL, Worcs, traders have been told lights cannot be strung across the roads because they are now deemed too wide, and cables may break.
But there will be lights in ELGIN, near Aberdeen – because they are kept up all year to save money.
A spokesman for the Association of British Insurers blamed high premiums on Britain’s increasingly litigious culture. He said: “If councils are protecting themselves from being sued, the policies will be expensive.”
