by Richard Robins
19 August 2010
A council in Scotland has been fined £20,000 after an elderly man died in a accident in one of their car parks.
Duncan McGillivray, who was 75, drowned in September 2007 when he drove his Vauxhall Astra off the unprotected north edge of Dunoon Coal Pier, after apparently selecting first gear instead of reverse.
Witnesses say his car drove at about 5mph off the pier and into the River Clyde, which resulted in his death.
Argyll and Bute council were fined as they were deemed responsible for the accident by not erecting a barrier to prevent such an accident occurring, as well as failing to carry out a proper risk assessment before opening the car park in 2006. Thhe car park has since been fitted with crash barriers and hand rails.