An unregistered gas installer carried out work on nine houses in Dublin and Kildare despite being suspended and left one house like a “ticking time bomb”, a court has been told.
Petros Tsiogas (63) was prosecuted by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) on 23 charges connected to works he carried out between February 2023 and last December.
Judge Paul Kelly imposed a four-month sentence at Dublin District Court, suspended for two years, on condition tradesman Tsiogas must not perform any gas installations unless he is registered.
He also handed the plumber a €500 fine and ordered Tsiogas, of Beechfield Meadows, Clonee, Dublin 15, to pay €750 in prosecution costs.
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The offence is punishable by maximum fines of €5,000 and up to six months’ imprisonment per offence.
Judge Kelly described the prosecution as a “Daniel O’Donnell”-type case, referring to the Donegal singer’s appearance in a television public safety campaign highlighting the necessity of using only registered gas installers.
Judge Kelly said there were many cases before the courts involving dodgy electrical work, with public safety the primary concern for the prosecuting authority.
He said this case was many times worse because it involved gas, particularly the “exceptionally serious” instance where Tsiogas’s work left a house in Celbridge like “a ticking time bomb”.
Shane Reynolds, prosecuting, said the offences involved Tsiogas carrying out gas work without being a registered installer. Tsiogas portrayed himself as one and provided false information, Mr Reynolds said.
CRU safety officer Shane McMahon said he received a call on November 28th last year about gas not working at the Celbridge house.
He said Tsiogas had replaced a boiler a day beforehand. His work was sloppy, and he was unable to perform and demonstrate his understanding of how to conduct checks and testing on the installation.
A Gas Networks Ireland first responder checked it and found a leak in a pipe.
Tsiogas claimed to be a registered gas installer, but a records check showed he had been “terminated” since 2021 and was no longer authorised. He still had a book of 50 gas certificates.
The plumber had registered with the gas scheme in 2009, but was suspended four years ago before a disciplinary board reinstated him subject to being under supervision.
But when he later failed to detect a gas leak on another property, he was terminated from the gas registration scheme.
The official told the judge he believed this case featured the most significant number of unauthorised gas work offences to come before the courts.
Eoin Heffernan, defending, stressed his client’s co-operation with the CRU, his lack of prior convictions and his early guilty plea.
He said Tsiogas developed health problems, which led to a downturn in his business around the time he lost his registration.
Mr Heffernan asked the court not to jail Tsiogas, who has ceased working and has no earnings.
