New research from Gas Safe Register (GSR) has revealed that almost 5 million people across the UK are putting themselves at risk from carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning, gas leaks, fires and explosions by employing illegal engineers.
GSR found that nearly 1 in 5 people who employed a tradesperson to work on a gas appliance did not check their ID Card or qualifications.
GSR has released 4 years worth of data from its investigations team, which searches out unqualified and unregistered gas fitters across the UK.
The team found that 65% of gas jobs carried out by illegal gas fitters were unsafe, while 1 in 5 gas appliances were so dangerous they had to be disconnected immediately.
The results identified that people selected and employed a trades person based on recommendations from friends and family members, and trust them based on their personal presentation or how official they look, rather than their qualifications.
Original article and images taken from: https://www.gassaferegister.co.uk/news/news-2017/almost-five-million-households-at-risk-from-illegal-gas-fitters/
