Case Report: 1999 SLT 672

The facts: A child of 11 was injured when climbing over a fence around an electricity sub-station in order to retrieve his ball. The fence was only 4 foot high at the relevant point.

Decision: The occupier was found to be at fault for not making the fence higher all-round to deter children from trying to climb it. Following earlier cases, the court said that the claimant belonged to a group of persons who could be reasonably foreseen to attempt to cross the fence. However, a finding of one-third contributory negligence was made against the boy pursuer for attempting to climb over a fence which was obviously dangerous (with a row of spikes on the top).