Media & PR

Haringey Council shows how not to respond to a bad news story

It’s the classic three steps to bad press work:

Step 1: Bad news
A bad news story about Haringey Council hits the media:

A man left brain damaged when he tripped in a pothole has won an estimated £1 million in damages…

Homes for Haringey, a subsidiary of Haringey council, initially denied responsibility for the accident, although they accepted that they had not maintained Lightfoot Road to a proper standard. In 2008 the council agreed to pay 72.5 per cent of Mr Bullock’s full claim value, and after five years of negotiations, the final figure was approved at the High Court this week.

Step 2: You say you’ve fixed things
Haringey Council issues reassuring press statement:

Haringey said it had introduced a comprehensive maintenance programme to prevent such accidents happening again.

Step 3: The evidence contradicts your
But what Haringey Council failed to do was to check if they really were on top of potholes in the road in question:

2 responses to “Haringey Council shows how not to respond to a bad news story”

  1. Again I have mentioned this before but why should the housing department be responsible for pot holes.

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