Devon landlord receives prison sentence for unsafe DIY gas work

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Gas Safe:

Allan King an Ilfracombe landlord was given a suspended jail term plus a £14,000 fine for endangering the lives of his tenants with DIY gas work in his rental property.

Exeter Crown Court on 4^th August heard that in September 2016 King replaced a boiler himself at his rented property on Arcade Road, this despite have no training in gas work and not being registered with the Gas Safe Register.

After the boiler developed a fault a month after the fitting, King called in a gas engineer for assistance. The engineer immediately recognised the DIY botch job and realised the boiler was risking the tenants’ lives, so he isolated. Following this The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) was informed and it launched an investigation.

It seems that King had had a previous warning in July 2016 from The HSE that only a member of Gas Safe Register is allowed to work on gas appliances.

King of Arcade Road, Ilfracombe pleaded guilty to breaches of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 and the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. He was sentenced to nine months imprisonment suspended for 18 months and fined £3,000. He was also ordered to pay costs of £12,184.14.

HSE Inspector, Simon Jones, speaking after the hearing, said:

“Landlords have a legal duty to ensure that any gas work at their rented properties is only undertaken by a member of Gas Safe Register.

“In this case, Mr King ignored previous warnings and undertook his own DIY gas work for which he had neither the competence nor credentials.”

”His actions were dangerous and put his tenants’ lives at risk’

A Landlord’s Responsibilities with Gas:

When letting a property that contains gas and gas appliances (including lodgers in a landlord’s own home) these precautions must be followed by law:

• Make sure gas fittings, flues and appliances are installed and maintained in a safe condition in accordance with the manufacturer’s service instructions. If these are not available it is recommended that they are serviced annually, unless advised otherwise by a Gas Safe registered engineer
• Have an annual gas safety check carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer on each gas appliance and flue and a Gas Safety Certificate issued.
• During the tenancy, or before any new tenancy starts, make sure the Gas Safety Certificate is current, and a copy is issued to the new or a current tenant within 28 days of the check
• The landlord to keep a record of each safety check for at least two years

Full information about landlords’ responsibilities for gas at: http://www.hse.gov.uk/gas/landlords/index.htm

A guide to landlords’ duties: Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998

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