A car has crashed into the security shutters of a corner shop that became a minor internet sensation earlier this year, when footage of a grandmother being hoisted into the air as the shutters closed underneath her circulated widely. BBC News reports that the shop has hit the headlines again, this time with a vehicle embedded in the metal shutter and debris scattered across the pavement.
The unusual detail is the coincidence of location. A small high-street shop that drew national attention for an accident in which an elderly customer was caught by descending shutters has become the scene of a second, very different incident within the space of a few months.
How the original incident happened
Security shutters on small shops are a common sight on British high streets, particularly in areas where businesses close overnight. The widely shared footage showed an older woman attempting to pass beneath a shutter as it was being pulled down, and the force of the movement lifted her off the ground. The clip was viewed widely and became a talking point about the design and operation of shopfront security.
Shutter suppliers and trade bodies have long stressed that automated closing mechanisms are designed to be operated correctly and that doors and shutters should not be closed while a member of the public is passing through. The case prompted renewed attention to the responsibility of shopkeepers to check their surroundings before bringing shutters down.
Shops and high-street safety
Security shutters sit within a wider debate about the vulnerability of independent retailers. Shopkeepers argue that they are an essential deterrent in a period of rising shoplifting and ram-raiding, while campaigners point to the injuries that mechanical shutters can cause. Some premises have moved towards safer alternatives, including grilles fitted inside the reveal and sensors that will not close if an obstruction is detected.
The issue has been raised by retailers’ organisations, and a number of safety measures and equipment changes have followed wider attention to the problem. The law relating to workplace and public safety covers the installation and operation of shutters as shopfitting equipment.
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Why it matters
The crash is a minor accident in itself, and no serious outcome has been reported. Its interest lies in the fact that the location has already become a shorthand for the risks attached to shop shutters, and that a repeat visit will keep the story in circulation.
For the retailer involved, the practical consequences are clear: damage to the frontage, loss of trading while repairs are made, and a customer base that has already been through one disruption at the same door. For the wider public, the story is a useful reminder that a piece of equipment which is part of the daily high-street landscape can cause serious harm when it is used carelessly.
What happens next
Police attended and are expected to record the crash, and the driver will have been spoken to about the incident. Insurance cover will determine who pays for the shutter and frontage repairs, and the shop will need a contractor to make the unit safe before trading resumes. The retailer is likely to face renewed enquiries about the shutter mechanism that caused the earlier incident.
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