Ms B Gajjar v British Gas Services Limited — 2018

At a preliminary hearing, the respondent had conceded that the claimant was disabled in relation to the alleged impairments. The tribunal considered the respondent's application to strike out the disability discrimination complaints or, alternatively, for a deposit order. The claimant's disability discrimination complaints had previously been identified as direct discrimination and discrimination arising from disability, though at this hearing she also referred to reasonable adjustments.

The tribunal found that the disability discrimination allegations were vague and unspecified, that the claimant's account shifted, and that she had not identified facts from which an inference of direct discrimination could be drawn. It also noted apparent time limit difficulties and no reason advanced for extending time. The disability discrimination complaint was therefore struck out as having no reasonable prospect of success.

For unfair dismissal, the tribunal noted that the issues would include whether dismissal fell within the band or range of reasonable responses and referred to the Burchell test. It considered that the issue required detailed evidence and submissions, so it was not appropriate to strike out the unfair dismissal complaint or order a deposit. The tribunal expressly stated that this should not be taken as validation that the complaint had merit.