Landlords warned over dangerous appliances
Published: 17-Jul-2007
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has warned landlords that there could be serious financial and legal consequences if they do not make sure gas appliances in their properties are in good working order.
The advice came after a London landlord, Thomas Glass Hooper, was fined £4400 and ordered to pay £1525 in costs after a faulty appliance in his property caused ten people in three nearby flats to be poisoned by carbon monoxide (CO).
The incident occurred in February 2007 and the subsequent HSE investigation found that a faulty boiler in a flat owned by Mr Hooper was responsible. In fact, it was found that the boiler in the flat had not been serviced or checked by a CORGI-registered engineer for 20 years.
While no one was killed in the incident, the CO levels which entered the nearby flats were very high and could have caused serious injury or death.
Prosecuting HSE inspector Andrew Withers said: "Keeping gas appliances in a safe condition by having a competent person maintain them is not hard to arrange.
"I am pleased the court took this matter seriously and sent out a message that landlords must act responsibly.
"Landlords need to realise that they can potentially face charges of manslaughter if they fail in their duties and someone is killed as a result."
