HSE | A company has been fined after it falsely supplied electrical safety certificates to two car wash businesses in Runcorn, despite them both being declared unsafe.
Inspectors from the HSE – alongside colleagues from Cheshire Police, Trading Standards and the immigration authorities – carried out an investigation into the activities of Super Hand Car Wash on Halton Road and Top Star Hand Car Wash on Bridge Street.
Both premises were found to have electrical systems that were dangerous. This resulted in HSE inspectors taking enforcement action against both businesses – forcing them to immediately stop work. The car wash owners were advised to use a National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting (NICEIC) registered electrical contractor or similar, to ensure that electrics were made safe to ensure the safety of the public and the people working on site.
Epco Energy Solutions Limited, who were at the time, members of the NICEIC were engaged to carry out the work and certified the installations as being safe to use.
However, an examination of the certificates by one of HSE’s specialist electrical inspectors found that details in them did not match the installations he found on site.A subsequent visit to both car washes found that the installations were still dangerous and presented a risk of serious injury or electrocution to those on site, including members of the public.
The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require all electrical installations to be maintained in a safe condition. This means that systems should only be worked on by someone who is a competent electrical contractor.The NICEIC is one of the certification bodies for electrical contractors in the UK.Membership of such a body indicates that the member has received appropriate training, and has been assessed to ensure that they are competent to carry out work on electrical systems.
Epco Energy Solutions Limited had visited and provided electronically generated certificates using the NICEIC secure members only systems. Certificates provided to the car washes indicated that the electrical systems on site were safe to use when they were not.With support from the NICEIC it was found that the certificates had been generated using password protected software and electronically signed with sole Epco Director Mohammed Naeem’s signature.
Epco Energy Solutions Limited, of Unit B, 37 Worlsey Road, Eccles, Manchester, were found guilty of breaching section 3(1) of the Health and Safety At Work Act 1974 etc, 1974. The company was fined £20,000 and ordered to pay full costs of £15,239.
HSE inspector Rose Leese-Weller said: “Due to having such a close relationship with water, car wash owners must ensure that their electrical installations are maintained in a safe condition.
“As well as being safe to use they must also be fit for purpose so as to prevent serious personal injury or electrocution to anyone in the vicinity.
“These car washes where dangerous and unsafe – to both those working there and to members of the public visiting the sites.
“Electrical installations at all workplaces must be maintained in a safe condition and are safe to use.”
This HSE prosecution was brought by enforcement lawyer Sam Crockett and paralegal officer Hettie Burrows.
