STOISITS: FAULTS DURING POLICE ACCIDENT RECORDING PREVENTS SETTLEMENT FOR VICTIM

In 2008, Mr S. was heavily injured at his workplace, a car repair shop: his employer hit him with a client’s car which was there for repair. Since then Mr S. receives a disability pension and suffers from the long-term negative effects.

The police had been informed about the accident and arrived right away. The police was investigated for physical injury resulting from negligence. The employer, who was also the driver, confessed. For this reason the present officers abstained from drawing up the license plate numbers. The consequences for Mr S. turned out to be very negative. Due to the employer’s liability privilege the employer is only held responsible in cases of deliberate harming of the employee through the employer. The liability insurance responsible of the accident vehicle could not be contacted by Mr S. due to the lacking information concerning the licence plate numbers. The driver stated that he did not remember which car had been involved in the accident. Mr S. whose situation had been caused by the errors of the investigating police officers tried to hold himself harmless in a government liability suit. However, this had been denied during the tendering procedure by the Financial Procurator.

Ombudswoman Stoisits emphasized the police’s misconduct. Especially in regard to the augmented victim protection the police would have been obliged to record the license plate number. The Ombudswoman also pointed out the tragic situation since all involved parties denied responsibility in regard to the victim. The Ombudswoman demanded clarification for the future since such accidents can happen any time.

FOLLOW UP –- LATE-NINETEENTH-CENTURY VILLA IN PRESSBAUM TO YIELD TO APARTMENT COMPLEX

Already in 2008, persons had complained about occurrences linked to the “Villa Seewald” in Pressbaum. Then, the main complaint concerned the long time span which had passed until the provisional roofing of the listed villa had finally been repaired. This delay had caused damages to the building. Nothing positive could be reported during the first follow up in 2009: The plastic tarp leaked, mold and mildew was visible throughout the entire building. The owner remarked that the building might lose its listing due to the economic inefficiency of a necessary renovation. The current situation turned out to be even worse: The villa is not a listed monument anymore and the demolition has been introduced. The owner’s safeguarding measures did not stop the villa’s successive deterioration which did not come as a surprise.

During the broadcast, Ombudswoman Stoisits discussed the efficiency of monument conservation in Austria with Barbara Neubauer, the president of the Federal Heritage Department. The Ombudswoman and the president came to the conclusion that the problem was located in the fact that the Federal Heritage Department does not execute preservation measures which it has ordered but is dependent on the local administrative authorities. Often these authorities are neither interested, nor capable. Competence and power of execution do not belong to the same body. The Ombudswoman supported locating the power of execution with the Federal Heritage Department. The president supported this notion as long as it guaranteed the making available of necessary resources. She also pointed out the necessity for a reform within the subsidy system around owners of listed buildings.