A rogue installer from Poole has been ordered to pay a £1,750 fine and costs of £8,000 when he was found guilty of presenting a £12,500 invoice to an 84-year-old resident for work that wasn’t necessary.
Thanks to a concerned neighbour, Trading Standards intervened, and work on the property at Broadmayne, near Dorchester, was stopped.
The unnamed installer, who claimed to be HETAS Registered when in fact he had never been registered, pleaded guilty and was charged under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008.
Members of the HETAS team were required to act as witnesses in a court case which resulted in the fine.
The case follows several successful prosecutions throughout 2018. HETAS has a number of procedures in place to limit false and misleading practices within the solid fuel industry, protecting consumers, including a whistleblowing procedure to report issues on an anonymous basis for both consumers and registrants wishing to raise awareness of non-compliant work.
Bruce Allen, CEO of HETAS, said: “Enforcement against rogue traders and those pretending to be HETAS Registered has become more common in recent years, aided by HETAS entering a formal Primary Authority relationship with Trading Standards.
We partner with Trading Standards and our registration team have provided numerous and regular Witness Statements to support legal enforcement nationwide.”