A plumber from Essex has been prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after work he carried out at a mobile home park left residents at risk of serious injury.

Self-employed plumber Michael O’Sullivan laid gas pipes beneath a property without ensuring there was proper ventilation. The pipes passed through a brick base which the mobile home sat upon – and the lack of ventilation meant any gas leak could have accumulated underneath the home and formed a deadly mixture.

Worried residents at the mobile home site in Breach Barns, Galley Hill in Waltham Abbey contacted the HSE in early 2009, after discovering unsafe fittings on cylinders of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), used for heating and cooking.

Sines Parks Ltd – which owns and runs the park – had previously commissioned Mr O’Sullivan to carry out work on various gas fittings and pipes at the site. The company owns 13 parks in the region. Residents own their own mobile home but Sines Parks Ltd retains ownership of the land and manages the utilities.

Mr O’Sullivan was not, however, registered to work on gas equipment and his work was found to be unsafe by HSE gas specialists who investigated.

The HSE issued Mr O’Sullivan with an immediate prohibition notice, banning him from carrying out any further gas work until he was qualified and registered. The HSE also warned all residents about his work.

On Friday, 26 March at Harlow Magistrates’ Court, Michael O’Sullivan – of Tillingham Court, Winter Way, Waltham Abbey – admitted breaching Section 3(2) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and Regulation 3(1) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998.

Sines Parks Ltd – based at College Road, Harrow – admitted breaching Regulation 4 of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998. The company had a duty to check that Mr O’Sullivan was registered.

Mr O’Sullivan was fined £1,000 with £500 costs.

Sines Parks Ltd – as the park management company which hired him to do the work – was fined £2,500 with £2,000 costs.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Steve Hook said that if one of the pipes had leaked gas underneath the mobile home, it could have ‘seriously endangered people’s lives’. 

‘It was extremely fortunate the poor workmanship was discovered before it was too late,’ said Mr Hook.

‘There is a reason the HSE operates the Gas Safe Register – working with gas appliances is difficult, specialised and potentially dangerous. Getting it wrong can cost lives. It is illegal for an unregistered person to carry out such work.

‘When unqualified workers try to bypass the law in this way they are not only putting themselves at risk of prosecution and a large fine, they are also putting people’s lives at risk.

‘Companies also have a legal obligation to ensure anyone commissioned to work on gas equipment is legally qualified to do the job. It is easy to check if someone is registered with the Gas Safe Register and there is no excuse for failing to make that check,’ Mr Hook added.

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