A carelessly discarded match and failure to comply with the rules for operating a vehicle with gas cylinder equipment (GCE) led to a fire in a car park in Astana. The court concluded that both car owners were to blame for what happened, and ordered the defendant to pay more than 1.6 million tenge in material damages and legal costs.
HOW THE FIRE STARTED
According to the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the incident took place in May 2025 in one of the capital's car parks. The defendant, while sitting in his car, lit a cigarette and threw an unextinguished match out of the open window. At that moment, a parked Audi A6 fitted with a gas cylinder system caught fire.
The moment of ignition was captured on outdoor CCTV cameras. According to the expert examination, the fire was caused by the ignition of a gas-air mixture formed as a result of a leak of gas vapours from the plaintiff's vehicle. The source of ignition was the unextinguished match thrown by the defendant.
WHY THE COURT FOUND BOTH OWNERS AT FAULT
The case was heard by the Taraz City Court, as the claim was filed at the defendant's place of residence and registration.
The court found that the owner of the burnt-out car had also shown gross negligence. The vehicle was fitted with GCE, but the mandatory fire safety requirements were not observed before it was parked for a long period, which, in the court's view, led to the gas leak.
As a result, the court concluded that the fire was caused by a combination of two factors: the defendant's careless actions and the plaintiff's failure to comply with the rules for operating the vehicle.
HOW THE PROCEEDINGS ENDED
The amount of damage, according to an independent assessment, exceeded 2.9 million tenge.
The criminal case against the defendant was dropped due to the absence of intent, and the administrative proceedings were discontinued due to the expiry of the limitation period. However, the court noted that this did not release him from civil liability.
Taking into account the degree of fault of each party, the claim was partially upheld. The defendant was ordered to pay material damages and legal costs amounting to more than 1.6 million tenge.
The court's decision has entered into legal force.
