Plumber sentenced after explosion at Willenhall bungalow

Date:

18 July 2011

Release No:

WM451/11

A Wolverhampton plumber has been given a ten-month suspended jail sentence for causing a gas explosion and fire in which a pensioner sustained 21 per cent burns rescuing his nine-year-old granddaughter.

Peter Naylor, of Wednesfield, removed the gas meter at the property in Arnhem Road to reach a leaking water stopcock he was repairing in December last year.

Wolverhampton Crown Court heard about 15 minutes after he had left the bungalow to buy a replacement stopcock fitting, the gas exploded, causing a fire which spread through the building.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), prosecuting, told the court that householder John Davies, 66, had to rescue his nine-year-old granddaughter from a back bedroom. She was unhurt in the incident, but badly shaken.

However, Mr Davies suffered 21 per cent burns to his face, neck and hands in the blaze. He spent six nights in hospital and required a skin graft to his left arm and hand. His home has since been demolished as a result of the damage caused by the fire.

HSE's investigation found Mr Naylor was not registered with the Gas Safe Register to work on gas appliances and had not isolated the gas system correctly.

Peter Willliam Naylor, of Frost Street, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 3(3) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 and was given a ten-month suspended prison sentence and ordered to carry out 150 hours' unpaid work. The court also ordered Mr Naylor to pay £2,000 costs.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Pamela Folsom said:

"This case is a warning to unregistered individuals that they should never undertake gas work under any circumstances.

"Anybody who carries out work on meters, boilers, hobs, ovens, fires or any other gas appliances without being on the Gas Safe Register is breaking the law.

"Mr Naylor believed he had sufficient basic knowledge to work with gas but he was not authorised to do this and did not follow proper safety precautions.

"His incompetence caused an explosion that could easily have been fatal, and the resulting fire left Mr Davies with serious burns and a home so badly damaged that it had to be demolished."

Householders should check that anyone carrying out gas work in their home has an identity card from the Gas Safe Register and should contact the Register immediately on 0800 408 5500 or visit the website www.gassaferegister.co.uk if they have any concerns.

Paul Johnston, Chief Executive of Gas Safe Register, added:

"Gas work should only be undertaken by someone who is competent and qualified to do so, and that means they must be on the Gas Safe Register. Our research has shown that around 250,000 illegal gas jobs are undertaken each year."

Notes to editors

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce 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. Health and safety legislation is currently under the spotlight as part of the Cabinet Office's Red Tape Challenge. To have your say on which regulations should stay and which should be scrapped, visit: http://www.redtapechallenge.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/home/index/ and the Government will consider your views.
3. Regulation 3(3) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 states: "No employer shall allow any of his employees to carry out any work in relation to a gas fitting or service pipework and no self-employed person shall carry out any such work, unless the employer or self-employed person, as the case may be, is a member of a class of persons approved for the time being by the Health and Safety Executive for the purposes of this paragraph."
4. Gas engineers undertaking gas installation and maintenance work must be registered with a body approved by the HSE. The approved body is Gas Safe Register. More information and a full list of registered engineers can be found on www.gassaferegister.co.uk.
5. Photos of the fire at the bungalow are available from COI News & PR

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Issued on behalf of the Health and Safety Executive by COI News & PR West Midlands