School inspector: 'My work-from-home laptop burned down my house'

Eileen Visser, who used the portable PC so she could work from home, is suing her former employers Ofsted for breaching safety regulations.

Mrs Visser, 59, says the four-year-old laptop was faulty and that she had complained about overheating problems.

According to a High Court writ, she was "under pressure" to complete a report in her study when the computer overheated again.

She was advised by technical support staff to leave the laptop to cool down, so she took her dog for a walk. When she returned about an hour later, her grade II-listed cottage was on fire.

The blaze, believed to have been caused by an electrical fault, destroyed the roof of her cottage in in Long Marston, between York and Wetherby, costing 359,000. She was able to recoup only 249,813 from her insurers.

Mrs Visser, who retired last December, had to take out a mortgage to pay the difference and has launched legal action against Ofsted for more than 100,000.

Her husband John, 63, said: "The case is complicated and has very serious implications for home working."

The family's solicitors claimed Ofsted had breached 13 rules governing working from home, including being negligent or in breach of its duty under the 1998 Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations and the 1999 Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations.