In February, a complaint from a homeowner in North Yorkshire led to an inspection of an installation undertaken by a non-compliant installer. A site visit from a HETAS inspector found the newly installed stove to be immediately dangerous, and the homeowners were instructed to not use their stove.

Following scheme conditions, the business was given was given a deadline to rectify the numerous faults identified by the HETAS inspector but failed to correct their work in the timeframe given. The failure to rectify the serious faults in the installation led to the removal of the individual and business from the HETAS Competent Person Scheme (CPS).

HETAS supports all installers who undertake high-quality, compliant work. Any installers who decide to not follow the Registration Conditions and relevant regulations are putting customers at risk and damaging the reputation of HETAS Installers. Where appropriate, HETAS cooperates with Trading Standards and local authorities to take action against dangerous work and unregistered installers.

‘Immediately dangerous’ installation

The attending HETAS inspector found the installation to have significant non-conformance leading to safety concerns. In their account, some of the faults found included:

Failure to adhere to minimum clearance to combustibles (the appliance was not the minimum distance from a skirting board and a combustible plasterboard wall)
Insufficient flue height and chimney support
Lack of carbon monoxide fitted in the appropriate area
Inadequate ventilation
Missing documentation (notice plate and commissioning documents)

All HETAS Registered Installers are expected to follow building regulations and relevant standards, and complete high-quality, safe work. This installation, if used, could have caused a serious house fire or left the homeowners susceptible to carbon monoxide poisoning.

Continued confidence

As a certification body that is accredited by UKAS, we are required to remain independent and impartial to ensure high-quality work can continue to be undertaken. HETAS is annually audited by UKAS to check we are continuing to adhere to scheme requirements and can continue to operate a competent person scheme.

This accreditation ensures we provide high-quality training – and regular refresher training – to all HETAS registrants, upholding the highest standards across solid fuel installations and their maintenance.

The work of HETAS registrants represents not only HETAS, but also the wider solid fuel and biomass industry. The safe, compliant, and consistently high-quality work carried out by HETAS registrants keeps homeowners safe and enables us to focus our efforts on select cases, such as this example in North Yorkshire, liaising with Trading Standards and local authorities to swiftly prevent any further danger.

Safety and compliance

Across the UK, quality work following the relevant regulations is integral to upholding safety and compliance. HETAS training provides registrants with the knowledge and expertise they need to undertake safe, compliant work. HETAS Technical Bulletins and the HETAS Technical Helpline are also available – in addition to direct support from appliance and component manufacturers – to provide comprehensive support to uphold safety and compliance.

An individual may choose to do non-compliant, unsafe work despite having previously demonstrated the capability to undertake competent work. We undertake regular inspections and have a complaints procedure to eliminate non-compliant work, keeping homeowners across the UK safe.

Regular refresher training is required for all HETAS registrants to keep them up to date on industry and technical developments, and our training materials are regularly assessed to make the training as comprehensive as possible.

We operate a robust scheme that meets national standards and is annually independently accredited by UKAS. Our continued commitment to safety and compliance is evident throughout industry, and individuals that choose not to apply the skills they demonstrated to pass our comprehensive training courses are penalised.

Reporting non-compliant installations

While complaints about non-compliant work represents a small minority of notified work, we take reports of non-compliant installations very seriously. If you have encountered a dangerous installation or have concerns about an appliance, please get in touch with our compliance team.

The HETAS Complaints Policy document contains more information about our procedures.

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