Gasfitter in clear over false-certificate claims

A police inquiry into an experienced gasfitter who was accused of signing hundreds of bogus safety certificates has cleared him of any wrongdoing.

The Weekend Herald revealed in September that hundreds of homes and businesses had been fitted with potentially illegal and dangerous gas connections which authorities say could put people at risk of fire or poisoning.

Police and Government authorities began investigating nearly 400 blank safety certificates that appeared to be signed by a craftsman gasfitter, then sold to up to eight unqualified tradesmen who carried out work in Auckland and Northland.

The sales went on for nearly three years until a homeowner noticed her gas certificate looked bogus and laid a complaint with the government licensing body, the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board, in July.

However, criminal charges will not be laid against the gasfitter at the centre of the inquiry. It now appears as though the safety certificates were able to be falsified because of a loophole left open by the gasfitters board.

Police spokeswoman Noreen Hegarty said the investigation was finished and there was insufficient evidence pointing to any criminal activity.

One of the factors considered by police was the large time delay between the time of installation of fittings and the audit dates - in some cases three years - during which time any number of people could have had access to fittings and gas installation.

Some fittings failures were beyond the certifier's control, said Ms Hegarty.

"For example, after installing and certifying a wall-mounted gas water heater at a property, a builder at the site later installed a vent beside the gas water heater, causing the gas fitter's job to fail a compliance test," she said.

Ms Hegarty pointed out that - prior to very recent changes to the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers website - anyone could purchase a book of gas certificates and use someone else's name.

All details needed to complete a gas safety certificate are available online, as the man at the centre of the inquiry is listed as a craftsman gasfitter with his registration number.

Anyone could buy a booklet of certificates from the board, fill in the gasfitter's details, then forge his signature.

The craftsman gasfitter, 72, welcomed the exoneration by police but declined to comment further.

The embarrassing loophole has since been closed by the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board but chairman Kern U'ren did not return phone calls yesterday.

An audit of more than 370 commercial premises and private homes found more than 90 per cent failed to meet compliance tests, with 16 found to be dangerous or unsafe.

At the time, gas investigator John DeBernardo said the blank certificates were a small fraction of the 100,000 issued during the three-year period.

While most were technical breaches and the number of potentially lethal gas leaks found was small, he urged anyone with information to come forward.