Dan Thomas acts for Health & Safety Executive in gas safety prosecution

Dan Thomas, acting on behalf of the Health & Safety Executive, appeared in the case against Christopher Dignam, trading as Blue Flame Plumbing & Heating Services. Mr. Dignam has pleaded guilty to breaches of Regulations 3(3), 3(7) and 26(1) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998.

Mr. Dignam received a prison sentence of 12 months suspended for two years at Minshull Street Crown Court for completing faulty work on two residential gas central heating boilers when he was not registered with Gas Safe. Mr. Dignam, who had falsely advertised that he was Gas Safe registered, was also ordered to pay compensation to both homeowners.

The case has prompted comment in industry publications as evidence of the fact that prison sentences have become much more prevalent for engineers who ignore the Gas Safety Regulations as a result of the new Health & Safety Sentencing Guidelines. Sentences of this kind were initially foreshadowed by the Court of Appeal in the case of R. v. Stephen Jonathan, [2012] EWCA Crim 380.

http://press.hse.gov.uk/2016/suspended-prison-sentence-for-unregistered-gas-worker/

http://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/jail-becomes-standard-for-gas-reg-breaches

Dan Thomas was instructed by Kate Harney & Peter Hayes, Fieldings Porter Solicitors