Court spotlight on Hull landlord's safety neglect

Date:

28 February 2013

Release No:

YH/047/13

A private landlord in Hull is facing the threat of jail after ignoring repeated warnings about gas safety and exposing tenants to a risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Hull Magistrates heard today (28 February) that Colin Hanson, 55, of Goddard Avenue, had 'blatantly and deliberately disregarded' a law designed to protect tenants from the potentially fatal consequences of defective gas work.

The prosecution was brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after Mr Hanson failed to respond to several requests to provide a landlord's gas safety certificate for a house he rented out in Alliance Avenue.

He then ignored an enforcement notice served by HSE giving him three weeks to have the gas check done. When an Inspector phoned him before the Improvement Notice expired in June 2011, he refused to have the work carried out.

A subsequent visit to the tenant's home by a Gas Safe Register engineer found an immediately dangerous defect on the gas fire in the lounge. HSE discovered the tenant had not been given a landlord's gas safety record in more than two years, nor had any work or servicing been carried out by any registered engineer on behalf of Mr Hanson.

Colin Hanson pleaded guilty to two breaches of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 between 23 August 2011 and 23 August 2012 and a charge of failing to comply with an Improvement Notice. He was handed a 16 week jail sentence suspended for 12 months, ordered to undertake 260 hours of unpaid work and told to pay £500 towards the prosecution costs.

Mr Hanson also received a court order giving him 28 days to carry out a gas safety check for the Alliance Avenue property.

Speaking after the court case, HSE Inspector Mark Welsh said:

"There is no doubt that Mr Hanson, despite being given several opportunities over many weeks to fulfil his legal duties toward the tenant, intentionally chose to ignore them all.

"All landlords are legally required to ensure that gas appliances installed in their rented properties are properly maintained and have a gas safety check carried out by a registered engineer every 12 months. A copy of the gas certificate should then go to the tenant.

"Lack of such a check can mean dangerous defects are not identified, defects that can lead to carbon monoxide exposure or even explosions.

"Mr Hanson's reckless attitude toward people's safety in a property rented by him persisted despite several warnings and HSE will not hesitate to bring such offences before a court."

All gas engineers have to be Gas Safe registered by law. You can check an engineer is registered by visiting www.gassaferegister.co.uk or calling 0800 408 5500.

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. Regulation 36(2)(a) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 states: "Every landlord shall ensure that there is maintained in a safe condition any relevant gas fitting, so as to prevent the risk of injury to any person in lawful occupation or relevant premises."
3. Regulation 36(3)(a) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 states: "A landlord shall ensure that each appliance and flue to which that duty extends is checked for safety within 12 months of being installed and at intervals of not more than 12 months since it was last checked for safety."
4. Section 33(1)(g) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 states: "It is an offence for a person to contravene any requirement or prohibition imposed by an improvement notice or a prohibition notice (including any such notice as modified on appeal).

Press enquiries

Regional reporters should call the appropriate Regional News Network press office.

Issued on behalf of the Health and Safety Executive by the Regional News Network