A THURROCK councillor says he is so shocked and angered by the borough council's lack of responsibility and penny-pinching attitude that he is going to pay for repairs to a Tilbury grandmother's home out of his own pocket.

Earlier this month Thurrock Nub New reported on the failure of Thurrock Council, and its insurers – Zurich – to take responsibility for damage caused by contractors to the porch of Susan Nelder, a grandmother who lives on Brennan Road in the town.

Even though contractors working on a grass verge outside Mrs Nedler's home admitted responsibility for a causing the damage to her porch when a stone or object in the grass flew over the fence outside her home and shattered a double-glazed door panel, the council and its insurers say they don't have to take responsibility for the damage.

Despite the intervention of local ward councillors Kairen Raper and Steve Liddiard asking Thurrock Council to instruct its insurers to pay up because it is clear a borough resident suffered because of action undertaken by the council – whether it was deemed negligent or not – the council has maintained its Scrooge-like stance.

The council's insurance team manager Lisa Harris says: "Whilst I sympathise with Mrs Nelder's situation, I must advise claims for compensation like Mrs Nelder's are made against the councils Public Liability insurance.

"Public Liability insurance protects the council to meet the cost of claims where the council is liable for loss or damage to a third party as a result of negligence. There is no automatic right to compensation and it is necessary for the claimant to demonstrate the council has been negligent and/or in breach of a statutory duty.

"Zurich Municipal have investigated Mrs Nelder's claim for compensation and advised that in this instance Thurrock Council has not been negligent as all reasonable precautions had been taken to prevent the accident."

Cllr Liddiard says: "I don't care what the insurance manual says, it is clear that action instigated by Thurrock Council on the verge outside Mrs Nelder's home was the cause of the problem. The insurance company and the council say all reasonable precautions were taken, but clearly what the workers did was not good enough or the incident would not have happened. If they did check the verge for dangerous objects they didn't do it sufficiently well to prevent the accident.

"I just don't see how that isn't the council's responsibility.

"It's not an attack on the workers, they did the right things and owned to up what had happened in writing and accidents will always happen despite everyone's best efforts. That's why we have insurance. If the policy isn't going to pay out, then what's the point of paying the premium?

"This needs to be put right so I will do it. I have ordered the new glass and will pay for and local firm Daybreak Windows have said they will install it for free, for which I am very grateful. Thankfully not everyone in Thurrock has the 'Bah Humbug' attitude of the council."

The Thurrock Nub News story prompted a number of other residents in the borough to come forward with similar instances where the council and insurers refused to acknowledge responsibility.

It appears to be a regular practice for Thurrock Council and its insurers to challenge residents to seek legal redress rather than admit responsibility – even when it appears the council has little defence.

Among those who have told us they have suffered a similar situation and had to pay up out of their own pocket – in most cases, as with Mrs Nelder, the cost of the repairs fall under the amount of excess they have to pay on an insurance claim – was Mary-ellen Rixson.

She told us: "They cracked my front window screen when they was cutting the grass. My car was parked in the communal area. They also admitted they done it. I put a claim to the council then they denied it and I had to pay myself to get it done." And not all the contractors were as honest as those involved in the Brennan Road incident. Michelle Brunton told us: "A council contractor knocked down my front wall and drove off. Luckily my neighbour saw it! I contacted the contractor directly and they sent someone out to rebuild it but they thought they had got away with it." And the incident has revived a long-running Nub News investigation into the council's refusal to pay full compensations after its enforcement team falsely impounded a vehicle and then destroyed it. The saga has dragged on since November in 2019 when we first contacted Thurrock Council on behalf of the Acott family from Stanford-le-Hope. The flatbed truck was impounded by the Council and held in relation to an alleged offence of fly-tipping. The offence was never proven and after a forensic examination the family were told they could get the truck back. However, the truck's return was delayed and when the family investigate they found out it was because an administrative error at the council had meant it had been crushed! The truck was being held by the Redcorn company who had impounded it on the council's instruction and because they had not been instructed to keep it, they destroyed it. The council conceded the error and said they would pay compensation. The family valued the truck at £8,000 and but the council only offered compensation of £1,500. The issue has dragged on for more than a year and is still unresolved. Michelle Acott, who is dealing with the matter on behalf of her son, told Nub News said: "In November 2019 Thurrock Council environmental team turned up at my house and seized my son's truck on an alleged offence of fly tipping. "My son attended a voluntary interview and denied all the allegations. The matter dragged on until September 2020 when the council said we could have his truck back. He had been cleared of all allegations. "Then we were told the truck had been crushed. The council immediately told us Redcorn were to blame. However, I was already one step ahead and had contacted Redcorn and spoke to them via email . They said they was never instructed to keep the vehicle for more than 28 days and had kept it for several months due to lockdown. "I have voice recordings of my calls between myself and the council and others to prove this. "To cut a long story short Thurrock Council admitted full liability, sent it to the public liability insurers Zurich, who have offered him a quarter of the vehicle's worth. And there was no offer of compensation for the work lost because my son didn't have his truck." Earlier this year Nub News against pressed the council for a statement but were told: "The council will not be providing a comment as this matter is being dealt with by the council's insurers who are speaking directly with the parties involved." Despite months that have passed since then Mrs Acott has told us the matter has not been resolved and the council and insurers are refusing to pay out anything like the real value of the truck's worth.