A father-of-three has blasted the owners of the Putney Exchange after a terrifying ordeal in a lift in the shopping centre.

Robert Stanger, 43, from Venneck Square, Roehampton, had been to see the Putney Christmas lights switch-on on Friday with his three children, aged 19, 15 and one, and his wife.

The family were heading up to the car park above the centre, in Putney High Street, in the lift when it suddenly dropped almost a floor.

After lurching for a few seconds and shuddering to a halt, it slowly began to rise and the petrified family managed to get the doors open, compose themselves and leave the lift.

Mr Stanger, an engineer, who jarred his back during the incident, said: “We were stuck between the floors and couldn’t get out. We all looked at each other, terrified.”

He said a security guard told him the lift was old and dangerous.

He said: “I was totally aghast, I think it’s disgusting staff know the lift is faulty.

“I gave the guard my name and number but I didn’t hear anything back until I contacted the newspaper.

“They are used by the public all day every day and it scares me that they are so matter-of-fact about it.”

A spokesman for the shopping centre dismissed the former engineer’s claims and said the lifts were in perfect working order.

She said: “We have taken steps to investigate the alleged incident involving one of our lifts.

“As part of our investigation process we have instructed our appointed lift contractor to inspect the lifts and they have today confirmed that our lifts pose no risk to the public and are safe to use.”

Mr Stanger has questioned this response. He said: “I am an engineer. There is something wrong with that lift. We aren’t doing this for the fun of it. Someone could get seriously hurt. We were on a high after watching the Christmas light switch-on but my wife felt she was going to die.”