Brentwood dad angry and four-month-old baby left shaken after manhole cover rips underside of £21k family car

A family day out for one Brentwood dad was ruined when a loose  Enclosure Square Plastic Key Manhole Cover ripped apart the underside of his car.

The 25-year-old man who wishes not to remain unnamed has told Essex Live about the ordeal which left his four-month-old son 'shaken' and 'upset'.

He said: "My partner was driving us to my mum's house in Maylandsea, we had planned to take the kids to Maldon's Promenade Park for the day.

"We got to Imperial Avenue when we drove over this manhole cover which wasn't secured properly. The noise it made was awful, at first I thought it had just ripped off the dust tray, but it was much worse.

"It ripped up into the fuel tank, I got everyone out of the car and saw all this fuel leaking out onto the floor.

"My mum dealt with my son and called for the fire brigade, who set up a cordon around the car.

"My four-month-old son was crying he didn't know what was going on. He has Down's syndrome and he was sat right about the fuel tank.

"I got under the car to have a look at the damage, my dad was a mechanic for 40 odd years and he said it was a write-off. "

The loose EN124  Resin and Fiberglass Manhole Cover was on a parking area used by customers visiting the parade of shops on Imperial Avenue.

The family had only had the 63 plate Audi Q3 for three months.

He said: "It's a £21k car and now we are going to have to get a courtesy car until it has been fixed.

"My son has to go to the hospital regularly and we have loads of appointments next week which I don't know how we are going to get to if we can't get a courtesy car at short notice."

The couple have contacted their insurance company and are in the process of putting in a claim.

"We need them to pay out, it's ridiculous, that manhole cover is dangerous."

The couple have contacted their insurance company and are in discussions with them with regard to the incident.

Essex Live are still trying to establish who is responsible for the maintenance of the manhole cover.

Genemat designed and manufactured bespoke composite covers to fit directly into the existing frames making installation quick and easy. Genemat covers are anti-corrosion; lightweight and securable, and can be safely removed and replaced by two people using lifting handle.Genemat covers have been engineered to provide a safe walking and driving surface, tested to be equivalent to a modern high-grade road surface. The customer opted for covers in a custom color to complement the surrounding area.

The city road now has a long-term solution that requires minimal maintenance and will continue to perform year after year, allowing safe and fast authorised access whilst eliminating previous manual handling issues and providing a safe walking and driving surface for users in all weather conditions.