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Suspended sentence for DIY gas installer who put tenants at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning (4 May 2016)

Date: 04/05/2016
Duncan Lewis, Personal Injury Solicitors, Suspended sentence for DIY gas installer who put tenants at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning

A barman who illegally installed gas pipes and a gas boiler at a flat has been prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for potentially putting lives at risk.

Geoffrey Voss, 59 – who works as a barman at a pub in Torquay – installed the gas pipework and gas boiler at a flat on Old Torwood Road, Torquay, despite holding no competencies in gas work and never having been registered with Gas Safe Register for any gas work.

Newton Abbot Magistrates’ Court heard that Voss’s illegal gas work came to light when the homeowner repeatedly asked him for the commissioning documentation for the new gas boiler that he had installed.

Voss never produced the document and the homeowner then raised his concerns with Gas Safe Register.

During the HSE investigation, Voss admitted that he had not commissioned the gas boiler after he had installed it.

Commissioning should have included tests to ensure that the boiler that he had installed was not producing high levels of carbon monoxide – but he left the boiler working without the tests being undertaken, putting the homeowner at risk from deadly carbon monoxide poisoning.

Geoffrey Voss of South Street in Torquay pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 3(3) and 33(1)(c) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations.

He was sentenced to 36 weeks’ imprisonment suspended for two years and ordered to pay £757 in costs.

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

“Only engineers with the correct competencies and who are registered with Gas Safe can legally carry out gas work – and it is fortunate no-one was harmed as a result of Mr Voss’s illegal work.

“Once a gas boiler has been installed, it should always be properly commissioned to ensure that it is operating safely.

“In this case, Mr Voss did no such safety checks after his illegal work – leaving it to chance that there would not be a risk of fire, explosion or carbon monoxide poisoning.”

Duncan Lewis Personal Injury Solicitors – No win no fee Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Claims

Duncan Lewis personal injury solicitors can advise those who have suffered carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning as a result of negligence on how to make a claim for compensation, including claims relating to gas boiler installations in the home and gas appliances in holiday flats and accommodation.

CO poisoning claims usually have to be made within three years of illness or diagnosis of CO poisoning. Children can make claims for CO poisoning up to the age of 21.

In cases where a loved one has lost their life as a result of CO poisoning caused by negligence, Duncan Lewis offers supportive advice to bereaved families on how to make a fatal injuries compensation claim.

For expert legal advice on no win no fee Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Claims, call Duncan Lewis personal injury solicitors on 0333 772 0409.


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