ESSEX Fire and Rescue Service has paid out almost £600,000 in compensation for successful negligence claims in the past five years – with many claims blamed on "badly parked cars obstructing crews".

Fresh figures have revealed, since 2020, the county's fire service has had to pay out to successful public and employee claims against the service, including £247,000 to nine injured employees.

From 2020 to 2024, 273 public and employer liability claims were lodged against Essex Fire and Rescue, 136 of which were settled. However, many of these were caused by crews being hampered by parked vehicles as they race to emergencies, the fire service claims.

A spokesman said: "The term 'compensation' can be misleading in this context. While it typically refers to money awarded for loss, suffering, or injury, the majority of the costs reported actually relate to routine insurance claims, not compensation in the traditional sense.

"Most of these insurance claims involve minor vehicle collisions, such as fire engines accidentally damaging parked cars on narrow streets.

"Navigating large emergency vehicles through tight urban and rural roads can be challenging, even for our highly trained drivers. We follow strict safety procedures, including firefighters being used as traffic marshals, to reduce the risk of incidents but occasional damage does occur."

The service said it would "encourage the public to park considerately to help us respond to emergencies safely and without delay".