§ Mr. CummingsTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many deaths and injuries have occurred to motorists using car lifting gear for repairs and maintenance in the last three years.
§ Mr. MaudeI have been asked to reply.
The home accident surveillance system collects details of non-fatal accidents in and around the home from the accident and emergency departments of 20 hospitals in England and Wales. The three most recent years for which data are available from HASS are 1984, 1985 and 1986; and in these years HASS reported respectively 88, 55 and 84 home accidents involving jacks, hoists and ramps which were being used for vehicle maintenance. While these figures are too small to make reliable estimates of national 566W figures, they probably correspond to national totals of 1,700, 1,200 and 1,600 such accidents in England and Wales for the three successive years.
The most recent years for which data are available on fatal home accidents are 1982, 1983 and 1984. In these three years there were respectively 10, 13 and six fatal home accidents involving jacks, hoists and ramps which were being used for vehicle maintenance.
It should be noted that the definition of "home" used above includes the garage, driveway, garden and yard, but excludes the public highway. Victims who were in paid employment at somebody else's home at the time of the accidents are also excluded.