Drowned mother could have been saved by a rail

A mother-of-three who fell from a hire boat, got caught in the propeller and drowned would “unlikely have fallen if an adequate guardrail had been fitted”.

Laura Perry was on the Norfolk Broads in August 2020 with her partner and their sons.

She fell overboard when the 42ft boat made contact with an embankment.

A Marine Accident Investigation Branch report said “it is likely that Laura would have been prevented from falling into the water if Diamond Emblem 1 had been fitted with an adequate guardrail around its stern”, and that the boat handover to the family was “insufficient”.