A Blackburn-based landlord has been prosecuted for gas safety failings which could have potentially endangered the lives of her tenants.
Samera Hussain was repeatedly contacted by Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council between October 2012 and April 2013, asking for evidence of a gas safety check at a property located on Cumberland Street.
This initial request was then followed by four more letters from the local authority and the Health and Safety Executive, (HSE) however these went unanswered. Ms Hussain also ignored an Improvement Notice given by the HSE which stated that she had 26 days in which to arrange a gas safety check.
A tenant had been living at the property for almost two years, but a gas engineer had only carried out one safety check prior to her moving out in June 2013. There were four gas fires and a gas boiler in the property, all of which should have been checked yearly by a Gas Safe registered engineer by law.
Ms Hussain pleaded guilty to single breaches of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 and the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 by failing to arrange the annual gas safety check at Blackburn Magistrates’ Court. She also admitted to failing to comply with an Improvement Notice and was fined £260 plus £207 in costs.
HSE inspector, Richard Clarke said: “Mrs Hussain potentially put her tenant’s life at risk by failing to arrange a gas safety check for nearly two years. We gave her several chances to organise an inspection, but she ignored all of these. As a result, we had no choice but to take legal action against her.
“Dozens of people are killed or badly harmed every year from carbon monoxide poisoning so it is vital that landlords take the risks seriously. We will continue to prosecute landlords who think the law doesn’t apply to them.”