Two partners in a home improvement company have been fined after building work at a house exposed a woman and her foster children to the risk of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

Two partners in a home improvement company have been fined after building work at a house exposed a woman and her foster children to the risk of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

The company, run by Janusz Wojcik and Phillip Thomas, was contracted to carry out loft conversion work at the property in Bettws, near Newport, on behalf of Newport City Council in November 2010.

As part of the improvement work the company had to replace a flue from the gas fire, which they left in an ‘immediately dangerous’ condition with the potentially lethal fumes escaping into the loft space, Cardiff Crown Court heard on 25 September.

The householder had agreed to modifications to her home with a grant from the council to accommodate four foster children, but had concerns about the quality of the work.

Upon investigation by a Gas Safe Register inspector it was found that the flue from the gas fire had been removed from just below the level of the loft, allowing CO into the loft space, and it was classed at ‘immediately dangerous’.

A Health & Safety Executive (HSE) investigation identified that the partnership did not obtain advice from a Gas Safe registered engineer before the chimney and flue were removed. The gas fire was still connected and used during the winter resulting in potentially deadly CO gas building-up in the loft space.

Janusz Wojcik and Phillip Thomas, partners of P Thomas and J Building and Home Improvement Specialists, each pleaded guilty to a breach of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations. Both defendants were fined £1,500 each.

HSE inspector Dean Baker said: “Janusz Wojcik and Phillip Thomas failed in their duty to ensure the gas fire was made safe before they removed the chimney and flue.

“The shoddy and careless work by the contractors could have cost a family with young children their lives. Anyone carrying out work on or near a flue should get the advice of a Gas Safe Registered engineer before starting work to ensure it is made safe. It is never acceptable to assume that a gas appliance will not be used after a flue has been removed”.

The householder, who does not want to be named, said: “The council approached me with a view to having a loft conversion to help with fostering. The contractors they chose for the job were not competent and put me and my foster children at risk.

“My son started complaining of headaches and feeling sick and I put it down to him playing computer games, not carbon monoxide. When the Gas Safe Register inspector found that the flue had been removed I realised just how lucky we were.”

Further information about gas safety can be found on the HSE website athttp://www.hse.gov.uk/gas/index.htm