On 23^rd November 2019, Belfast Live reported that almost 8,000 street lights were broken in Northern Ireland. However, this number is unfortunately only likely to increase rather than reduce. This is due to the fact that the Department for Infrastructure, responsible for such repairs, has said that it doesn’t have enough money to keep up with repairs.

In a statement, the Department for Infrastructure said a lack of resources meant it was taking “longer than usual” to fix street lights, and it was unable to run a “full lighting repair service”.

A spokesperson said: “In common with many other parts of the public service, the Department continues to face budget challenges.”

The Department is responsible for a total of 286,902 street lights and as of 20^th November 2019, it had recorded 7,887 outages.

Given the lack of resources, the Department has said that priority is given to hazardous electrical defects and group outages.

Lack of lighting is not only a frustration for residents, it can also make getting around the local area more dangerous whether you are driving, cycling or on foot. If an area is badly lit, it is harder for people to spot hazards and other obstructions. This could lead to tripping accidents and falls resulting in personal injury.

If you have been a victim of such an incident in a public place you may be able to make a compensation claim. A necessary element for any successful claim for personal injury compensation is establishing fault, either through negligence or breach of statutory duty. It is not for the Plaintiff to prove that the Defendant was negligent, it is for the Defendant to prove that they took all reasonable steps to comply with their duty of care.

To find out more about how our specialist personal injury lawyers could help you, please email on katrinalagan@hhdsolicitors.com.