Girl Tragically Died After Her Scarf Became Trapped In Go-Karting Accident

The Go-Karting company responsible for a Cambridgeshire raceway has pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety rules following the death of a teenage girl who died in a karting accident.

Suzanne Cornwell, 18, from Hardwick, tragically died after her scarf became trapped in a Go-kart in December 2009.

Paul Shinn, manager at the time and Peterborough Raceway Ltd both pleaded guilty to safety breaches.

They will be sentenced at Peterborough Crown Court on the 4th of November.

Miss Cornwell was taking part in an out-of-hours go-karting session, when her scarf became tangled in the axle of her kart.

When the East of England ambulance service arrived, they had said Miss Cornwell was unconscious at the time of arrival and had suffered “critical” neck injuries. She died in Addenbrooke's Hospital, in Cambridge, the following day.

South Cambridgeshire District Council (SCDC) prosecuted the firm under health and safety legislation, following a police investigation and inquest.

The council said the safety briefings they provided to the public were inadequate and there were not enough track marshals on duty.

Safety risk and effective health assessments had not been carried out, investigators said.
In addition, the premises and equipment were "generally in a poor condition".

Mick Martin, SCDC's cabinet member for environmental services, described Miss Cornwell's death as a "tragic accident".

He added: "There were very clear shortcomings from the company in their practices."

After the accident, Peterborough Raceway Ltd closed the track in Caxton and no longer operates the site.

Expert Opinion

This is a sad and tragic example of why businesses need to apply the strictest health and safety measures. <br/> <br/>“It is poor risk assessments and other safety failings that lead to accidents like this one. When providing a service such as Go-Karting to the public, companies must adhere to health and safety checks otherwise they are potentially risking the lives of the public who use the facilities. <br/> <br/>“Before going out on the track, pre safety checks should always be done by the facility provider and it is imperative that all protective clothing or equipment is provided and worn correctly. We hope other activity providers take note of this case and continue to improve health and safety measures to stop devastating events like this happening in future.” <br/>