Home owners are being warned by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to check that gas installers are properly registered and hold a current 'Gas Safe Register' identity card.
This warning comes after the prosecution of Mr Kevin Hall of Cannock, trading as Norfix Plumbing and Heating. He has been jailed for 84 days for breaching Health and Safety legislation.
Hall was sentenced on 9th June 2009 at Cannock Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to two counts of breaching Section 33(1)(g) of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act1974. He was carrying out gas work in contravention of a Prohibition Notice.
The HSE started an investigation into Mr Hall's work after receiving a complaint concerning gas work he'd undertaken in a house in Cannock in 2008. Mr Hall had replaced an old gas boiler, after falsely claiming that he was CORGI registered.
Before April 2009, when the Gas Safe Register was introduced, gas engineers were legally required to be CORGI registered. Mr Hall used another engineer's CORGI registration number on paperwork that he gave to the householder.
When inspected by a CORGI registered engineer, his work was found to be 'not up to current standards' although the work did not appear to pose any major risks to the occupants.
Mr Hall was issued a Prohibition Notice in July 2008, preventing him from carrying out any further gas installation work. HSE staff tried many times to contact Mr Hall, however he failed to respond. The HSE investigation uncovered further boiler installations in Cannock and nearby Brocton that had been completed in December 2008, after the Prohibition Notice had been served. At both of these addresses, Mr Hall had falsely claimed to be registered with CORGI and left the households with heating systems without hot water.
Although the installations were not immediately dangerous, the works carried out did not comply with the current standards, and households did not receive any paperwork to certify that the work had been carried out according to gas safety regulations.
Speaking after the case, HSE investigating inspector Andrew Bowker said:
"Kevin Hall continued to do sub-standard gas work without registration. The work has needed to be put right by registered engineers. Fortunately, in this instance, no one died or became ill. Such a blatant disregard for the law will not be ignored by HSE.
"By failing to be correctly registered with CORGI, Hall gained financial advantage over bona fide registered installers. However, the householders incurred additional costs in remedial work so their installations were a false economy.
"Every effort was made to contact Mr Hall in order to resolve the situation before proceedings were brought, so he was well aware that he was acting unlawfully.
"HSE would urge anyone having gas work undertaken to ensure that the contractor carries a 'Gas Safe Register' identity card. Tenants must also ensure that their landlord has provided them with a current gas safety certificate."
This warning comes after the prosecution of Mr Kevin Hall of Cannock, trading as Norfix Plumbing and Heating. He has been jailed for 84 days for breaching Health and Safety legislation.
Hall was sentenced on 9th June 2009 at Cannock Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to two counts of breaching Section 33(1)(g) of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act1974. He was carrying out gas work in contravention of a Prohibition Notice.
The HSE started an investigation into Mr Hall's work after receiving a complaint concerning gas work he'd undertaken in a house in Cannock in 2008. Mr Hall had replaced an old gas boiler, after falsely claiming that he was CORGI registered.
Before April 2009, when the Gas Safe Register was introduced, gas engineers were legally required to be CORGI registered. Mr Hall used another engineer's CORGI registration number on paperwork that he gave to the householder.
When inspected by a CORGI registered engineer, his work was found to be 'not up to current standards' although the work did not appear to pose any major risks to the occupants.
Mr Hall was issued a Prohibition Notice in July 2008, preventing him from carrying out any further gas installation work. HSE staff tried many times to contact Mr Hall, however he failed to respond. The HSE investigation uncovered further boiler installations in Cannock and nearby Brocton that had been completed in December 2008, after the Prohibition Notice had been served. At both of these addresses, Mr Hall had falsely claimed to be registered with CORGI and left the households with heating systems without hot water.
Although the installations were not immediately dangerous, the works carried out did not comply with the current standards, and households did not receive any paperwork to certify that the work had been carried out according to gas safety regulations.
Speaking after the case, HSE investigating inspector Andrew Bowker said:
"Kevin Hall continued to do sub-standard gas work without registration. The work has needed to be put right by registered engineers. Fortunately, in this instance, no one died or became ill. Such a blatant disregard for the law will not be ignored by HSE.
"By failing to be correctly registered with CORGI, Hall gained financial advantage over bona fide registered installers. However, the householders incurred additional costs in remedial work so their installations were a false economy.
"Every effort was made to contact Mr Hall in order to resolve the situation before proceedings were brought, so he was well aware that he was acting unlawfully.
"HSE would urge anyone having gas work undertaken to ensure that the contractor carries a 'Gas Safe Register' identity card. Tenants must also ensure that their landlord has provided them with a current gas safety certificate."
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