Gas pipe

[David Hearn]

Not quite an identical example - but still involving gas, explosion and death...

"Utility firm Transco has been fined £15m - a UK record - after being convicted on a charge arising from an explosion which killed four people."

"The blast, caused by a leaking gas main, destroyed the Findlays' home."

"Four members of the Findlay family died when their house in Carlisle Road, Larkhall, was totally destroyed in the early morning blast."

"Transco was convicted of failing to maintain the iron gas main which ran through the Findlays' garden when it was extensively corroded and leaking."

"A fridge was blown onto the roof of another house in the explosion. One witness described the scene as like a "war zone"."

[John]

You had to involve dimm didn't you?

[Andy Hall]

It was probably like a warzone beforehand anyway, but notwithstanding that, does illustrate that involvement of the "professionals" does not guarantee safety.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Ah - but Transco people who work on/check gas mains don't have to be CORGI registered. If they did, this could never have happened. ;-(

[DJC]

The other possibility if no one can put a house on the market without a sellers pack, and bearing in mind that the local search etc. part of it goes out of date after (I believe) three months, is a new category in the estate agents windows. Not 'for sale' but 'on view' perhaps or POA. So only when a buyer actually expresses a firm intention to buy will the sellers pack be put together. so not really much change at all.

[Ed Sirett]

My view is

1) DIY is unstoppable. 2) Education is better than secrecy and ignorance.

I try to take a middle line between your view point and that of "s-p-o-n-i-x".

Obviously there are ranges of ability and experience. The dangerous DIYers are the ones whose confidence exceeds there competance.

[Andy Hall]

Err.... I didn't write that, Ed....

[Ed Sirett]

Sorry, probably due to some snipping on my part together with my newsreader (GPAN).

[John Rumm]

Nonsense... firstly there is very little that should be "banned" in my book. It is also pointless banning something that you are unable to police or enforce.

Secondly define "DIY". Should a person who's day job is as a gas fitter be banned from fitting his own appliances?

[Owain]

Probably. Cobbler's children ...

Owain

[Aidan]

You wouldn't be CORGI registered by any chance, would you?

If I were to compile a list of known instances of hair-raising incompetence, then "gas men" would probably feature in three of the top four or five positions.

The HSE doesn't agree with you. I don't agree with you. I have seen incompetent/negligent "professionals" and competent, "meta-professional" DIYers. I'm opposed to slovenly negligence.

I'd propose that we ban CORGI registered personnel from all non-gas installation and pipework because, IMHO, a lot of them haven't got a clue; e.g., soldered copper (water) pipes dripping with gobs of active flux, inadequate pipe supports, new installations containing no inhibitors, mis-sold combi boilers, bone-head wiring, pathological inability to RTFM, utterly clueless wrt chemical water treatment, ditto thermal insulation, rusted radiators repeatedly replaced by Big Gas company fitters over 10/15/20 years with no realization of the underlying problem with the system (that they'd installed), etc. , etc., ad nauseam.

"It's yer pump, luv." "It'll all 'ave to come out, mate." "You can't get the parts for these any more."

Any of this sound familiar? The delusion that CORGI registration confers technical competence is a very dangerous thing.

I'd counter-propose that CORGI registration should require a test of ethics and morality and the inspection of invoices submitted.