Gas fitter and employer fined for raft of safety breaches

Date:

12 April 2011

A gas fitter and his employer have been sentenced for putting people's lives at risk with a catalogue of defective work.

The range of offences included making basic errors when installing gas appliances and pipe work at three separate properties in Holyhead and Bangor, and not being registered with the official accreditation scheme, a court heard today.

Anthony Trevor Hughes, 47, of Gwalchmai, Anglesey, admitted breaching the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 at Caernarfon Magistrates' Court. His employee Justin Shane Owen, 37, of Llynfaes, Anglesey, who was in court for sentencing, had pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing at Holyhead Magistrates' Court.

The court heard that between December 2006 and March 2007, Mr Owen had unsafely installed gas appliances at three properties in Bangor and Anglesey.

Mr Hughes also falsely claimed to be registered with the approved gas safety scheme at the time, CORGI (now Gas Safe Register).

Mr Owen's faulty work led to gas leaks at two of the homes potentially endangering lives. At one home, the flue terminal was installed upside down, as was an autochangeover unit at another premises and coins had been used to seal gas pipes.

HSE Inspector, Dave Wynne, said:

"Both Mr Hughes, as the employer, and Mr Owen, as his gas operative, have shown a blatant disregard for the law, codes of practice and standards regulating the domestic gas safety market.

"Some of the errors made by Mr Owen in installing these appliances were rudimentary and clearly demonstrated a lack of competence in even the most basic of work. They were also very serious and put people's lives at risk.

"Furthermore, in making false claims to be registered, Mr Hughes deliberately attempted to deceive the public and gained economic advantage over the vast majority of gas fitters who work safely and within the law."

Mr Hughes pleaded guilty to five breaches of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 and was fined £2,625 with costs of £7,500, and Mr Owen was fined £900 for nine breaches, however, as he is currently in custody for other, unrelated offences, he will instead serve 28 days' detention.

The official gas registration scheme is Gas Safe Register, which replaced CORGI in 2009. All gas engineers must be registered with Gas Safe Register.

Paul Johnson, Chief Executive of Gas Safe Register said:

"Only a Gas Safe registered engineer should carry out gas work in your property. Every registered engineer carries a Gas Safe Register ID card with their own unique licence number. Before any gas work is carried out always check their ID card to make sure your engineer is qualified for the work you want done and their qualifications are in date."

Carbon monoxide has no smell or taste and it can kill quickly without warning. Gas appliances should be properly maintained, and should always have an annual safety check. HSE also strongly recommends the use of carbon monoxide detectors in homes as a precaution.

Notes to editors

1. The Health and Safety Executive is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce work-related death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice; promoting training; new or revised regulations and codes of practice; and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement. www.hse.gov.uk
2. Gas Safe Register is the government approved registration scheme for gas engineers in the UK, Isle of Man and Guernsey and replaces the CORGI scheme. The register of 126,000 gas engineers, aims to protect 21 million gas consumers from dangerous gas work. It is a legal requirement for any gas engineering business or self employed gas engineer carrying out domestic or commercial gas work to be registered under the Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998. More information on the Gas Safe Register can be found at www.gassaferegister.co.uk
3. Gas Safe Register assesses the competence of engineers on the register by inspecting a sample of the gas work they carry out to make sure they are safe to work on gas. Gas Safe Register is focused on gas safety and campaigns to raise awareness of gas safety risks, including those associated with using illegal gas workers.
4. More information on gas safety can be found on HSE's website at www.hse.gov.uk/gas
5. Mr Owen pleaded guilty to contravening the following regulations at one or more properties:
   • Regulation 3 (1) Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998 in that he carried out work in relation to a gas fitting when he was not competent to do so;
   • Regulation 5 (3) Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998 in that he carried out work in relation to a gas fitting otherwise than in accordance with appropriate standards and in such a way as to prevent danger to any person;
   • Regulation 6 (2) Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998 in that he carried out work in relation to a gas fitting without ensuring that every incomplete gas way was sealed with an appropriate fitting or was otherwise safe when left unattended;
   • Regulation 6 (6) Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998 in that he carried out work in relation to a gas fitting without conducting a test of the gas installation for gas tightness;
   • Regulation 26 (1) Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998 in that he installed a gas appliance and pipe work which when used constituted a danger to persons;
   • Regulation 27 (1) Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998 in that he installed a gas appliance, namely a gas fired boiler, without a flue that was suitable and in proper condition for the safe operation of that appliance.
6. Mr Hughes was found guilty of contravening the following regulations at one or more properties:
   • Regulation 3 (7) Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998 in that he falsely pretended to be a member of a class of persons required to be approved by the Health & Safety Executive for the purposes of gas fitting;
   • Regulation 3 (2) Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998 in that he failed to ensure that Justin Owen, a person who carried out that work, was competent;
   • Regulation 3 (3) Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations 1998 in that he allowed one Justin Owen to carry out work in relation to a gas fitting whilst the said Tony Hughes was not a member of a class of persons approved for the time being by the Health & Safety Executive.

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