subject: Appliance Testing And Tagging: Escaping An Insurance Loophole [print this page] Testing and tagging procedures. Safety and health standards require companies and household owners to hire the services of a certified contractor to check their electrical equipment and connection. So if the cause of the fire is faulty wiring or an overloading circuit, yet you couldnt produce a certification of inspection, your insurance company may fight tooth and nails to refrain from covering the costs.
Hiring unlicensed electrician may be cheap
But is it safe? According to the protocol, the insurance firm will request for the name of the contractor that supposedly conducted electrical tagging in NSW, for example. What the company is looking for is the post-management report which outlines the type of work. Any electrician can produce this report but it needs to be authenticated by a regulating body and any electrician who did not receive formal training for this type of work has no business checking and tagging your equipment. As far as the law is concerned, you are responsible for your workplace and so you are also liable if anything happens. Knowingly hiring an unlicensed electrical can land you in a heap of trouble.
No malice intended, mostly
What happens usually is, the owner has no idea about the existence of the regulations; or even if they knew, they think that hiring a competent electrician is enough. Second, they hire somebody they know either through an acquaintance or affinity. Theres no question about the ability of the electrician but the law is very clear about contractors who are authorised to conduct appliance testing and tagging in Australiathey need to be trained on the procedure and the legal requirements.
In danger of catching fire
Numerous business establishments in Australia are still not following the standards for appliance test and tag procedures. Government regulators are constantly combing the country for any violators. The erring companies were made to pay hefty fines. But theres a clear and present danger to the safety of ordinary workers and consumers. People with no idea of the risks that lurk are confident of their safety because of one reason: if the electrical equipment works when you plug it in, it must be safe right? Then they get surprised when told by professional electrical testing and tagging companies that their system is not up to par.
by: jamess
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