When a council housing officer visited the property rented by Sheffield landlords Waheed Ahmid and his wife Farhat Basharat, he noticed a gas fire’s flame burning yellow.
A Gas Safe Register Investigator was called in and found a range of serious faults with appliances and fittings throughout the property. He decommissioned the boiler, cooker and gas fires in the lounge and dining room after classifying them ‘immediately dangerous’ and also found evidence of carbon monoxide fumes.
The Heath and Safety Executive subsequently found that the appliances and flues had not been checked annually by a registered gas engineer, they had not been maintained in a safe condition as required by law, and the tenant had never been given a copy of the gas safety record.
Both landlords pleaded guilty and were handed three month jail sentences, suspended for 12 months. Ahmid was also ordered to undertake 150 hours of community service and pay £2,500 towards prosecution costs. Basharat was ordered to undertake 200 hours of community service and pay £5,000 in costs.
HSE inspector Denise Fotheringham said:
‘It is totally unacceptable to have a property where a tenant’s life is threatened because the gas appliances haven’t been properly installed or looked after.
‘Although there was no injury the appliances were in a shocking condition. Some were spilling carbon monoxide into the rooms where they were sited. It is pure luck no one was made ill or even died.’
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