NATIONAL COURT attaching a full account of the circumstances of“ Incident 1”, together with the contact details of Spectators A and B. The form is dated 18 February and was emailed by Mr Harding to Motorsport UK on 20 February.
33. We therefore conclude that the Organiser followed the correct procedure that their duties required in that regard.
The Clerk of the Course: Mr Ikin
Ground 2( a) That the Clerk, in addition to the Organiser, failed to ensure the organisation of the Event met the requirements of the relevant Statutory Instruments pursuant to NCR Ch. 13 App. 2 Art. 2.1. a.
34. We have dealt with the organisation of the event route and the relevant statutory and regulatory requirements in the wider context of the Organisers, above. Having set out Mr Ikin’ s involvement there, there is no need to repeat that here.
Ground 2( b) That the Clerk, as the Senior Official of the Event, failed to notify Motorsport UK of a serious incident involving spectators in contravention of the ASN Incident Pack.
35. As we have set out above, we have concluded that this incident was not a“ serious incident“ within the definition contained in the Incident Pack.
36. However, as set out within section A2 of the Incident Pack, the incident was one which potentially involved a vehicle entering a spectator area( the area and position of Spectators A and B are not precisely identified to us) and involved“ any injury to a member of the public”, so should, according to the guidance, have been reported by Mr Ikin as the Senior Official, immediately after he became aware, using the emergency contact number. That awareness had arisen no later than around 01.00 hours on 16 February. This important procedure was not followed.
37. We recommend that consideration is given to amending any definitions that refer, possibly ambiguously, to nonspecific officials such as here, where there is reference to“ The Motorsport UK Steward or Senior Official where a Motorsport UK Steward is not present”. A clear statement of where responsibilities fall would be to the benefit of all.
Ground 2( c) That the Clerk of the Course failed to communicate both adequately and respectfully with the injured parties in contravention of Ch. 2 App. 1 Art. 1.16 and the ASN Incident Pack( Incident Definitions, A. Serious Incident).
38. We feel that it should be emphasised that the responsibilities of the Clerk of the Course conclude once the results have been published, protest times have expired, any post-event inspections have been concluded and any Right to Review procedure has been completed. NCR Ch. 5 App5 Art 1.1.
Revolution- May 2025
39. Mr Ikin explained that he felt it was“ part of his role” as Clerk of the Course to find out who the injured parties were. In the helpful Timeline compiled and submitted by all the club officials, Mr Ikin refers to calls he made to Spectator A on 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th February 2025,“ to discuss the incident, in an attempt to gather any facts that were available to clarify the incident.” We have also seen emails between the two. Spectator A refers to speaking to Mr Ikin about the necessity for the competing crew to have insurance, the reason why marshals had left the corner and Mr Ikin’ s reference to where fault lay. That last point straying into what might be a highly contested legal issue.
40. NCR Ch. 1 App. 3, Art11.1 provides,( emphasis in original),“ In the event of any incident involving injury to a spectator or official, or damage to third party property, a full report must be made to the ASN as soon as possible. There must be no discussions or correspondence whatsoever regarding the incident other than to confirm that the facts are being reported to the ASN.”
41. Before us, Mr Ikin frankly admitted that he was unaware of this provision.
42. NCR Ch. 1 App. 3 Art11.1 is not new. It reflects what was General Regulations Appendix 2, Insurance and Motor Competitions, paragraph 12 in the‘ Blue Book’ up to 2024.
43. NCR Ch. 2 App. 1 Art. 1.16 refers to“ misbehaviour or unfair practice.” Misbehaviour is not defined in the NCR, but its general meaning encompasses breaking a rule, such as here. There is no suggestion that the exchanges were other than polite and, as Mr Ikin explained, well- intentioned on his part. The gravity of the situation, as we see it, is that private opinions are irrelevant to determining issues of fault and / or negligence, and the restriction on discussion or correspondence exists specifically to protect parties’ abilities to defend themselves if litigation ensues and to ensure the ability to obtain future insurance cover. We cannot but conclude that for an experienced Clerk of the Course to fall into such an error is serious enough. That it was done in ignorance of a well-established regulation compounds the error.
44. We have set out our conclusions relating to Incident Definitions. Nothing more need be added here.
The Competing Crew: Mr Roberts( Driver), Mr Price( Co- Driver)
Ground 3( a). That the Driver failed to notify the Police of an incident occurring on the Public Highway, specifically the failure to comply with the requirements under s170( 2) and / or( 3) and( 6) of the Road Traffic Act 1988( RTA 1988)
45. In respect of Ground( a), Motorsport UK relied upon NCR Ch. 3 App. 2 Art 1.2. This provides,“ Competitions taking place on the Public Highway must conform with the laws of the country in which they take
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