Fined builder digs deeper into trouble

Councillor Wera Hobhouse, the Council's Cabinet member for the Environment and Sustainability

A builder who appealed against a £25,000 fine for breaking the law on electrical safety will end up paying more becuase he failed to turn up to the appeal hearing; the judge dismissed his appeal and ordered him to pay Rochdale Council's £3,700 costs.

In March, Michael Eastham, of 15 Wordsworth Avenue, Farnworth, Bolton, was fined £25,000 plus costs at Rochdale Magistrates' Court after Rochdale Council's Building Control Service took legal action because of the risk his work could pose to the public.

The service had offered Eastham the chance to put the work right before taking him to court but he did not do this.

He was found guilty of five breaches of building regulations associated with an electrical installation he did on a house in Heywood.  A number of the breaches were for dangerous work, one was for damage to the main electrical supply cover leaving access to live wires.

Eastham appealed against the size of the fine but after he failed to attend the appeal hearing in front of a judge sitting at Bury Magistrates' Court his appeal was dismissed and he was ordered to pay more than £3,700 costs.

Councillor Wera Hobhouse, the Council's Cabinet member for the Environment and Sustainability, said: "The Council will not hesitate to take legal action against tradesmen who are flouting building regulations designed to ensure electrical work is safe. The easiest way to ensure electrical work meets these regulations is for householders to use competent electricians who are registered with Government approved schemes."

To help protect the public, the majority of electrical installations in homes now require building regulation approval. Anyone who does not use an electrician registered with a Government approved scheme must apply for building regulation approval from Rochdale Council.

For more information ask the Building Control Service for the free booklet called 'Building Regulations (Part P) Electrical Safety'

Email: building.control@rochdale.gov.uk
Telephone: 01706 924327