A real estate agent accidentally set fire to a house she was helping to sell. Julie Bundock, the agent overseeing the sale of the multi-million dollar property in a Sydney suburb, noticed bedsheets left out to dry on the deck by the current tenants during a visit to the property.

Bundock moved the sheets to a downstairs shelf, unknowingly placing them below an electric light switch she later turned on. About 20 minutes later, a fire broke out, believed to have started from the heated shelf and bed sheets catching fire from the wall-mounted light. The entire $3 million house was destroyed, fortunately without any injuries.

The owner of the house, Peter Alan Bush, took the matter to court. In court, he claimed Bundock had admitted her mistake, allegedly saying she accidentally caused the fire by placing the sheets against the burning light. Chief Judge in Equity Justice David Hammerschlag ruled that Bundock had created the risk of fire and ordered her employer, Domain Residential Northern Beaches, to pay compensation to Mr. Bush and the tenants affected. He criticized Bundock’s behavior in court, describing her as an aggressive and uncooperative witness. Domain Residential Northern Beaches tried to shift some blame onto Mr. Bush and the tenants, but the judge rejected this argument.