Hi Radswilldo,
Please read the relevant section of the Regs they can be downloaded for free. The question is a well know problem.
Its fitter beware both private and paid. The same laws apply to them as to you when fitting or doing gas work.
What you are trying to make out, is that gas fitting is the preserve only of ACS approved gas fitters, that is not so. Perhaps it should be, but its not the law.
Incidentally possessing ACS's is no guarantee of good workmanship or proper ways of working. If it was, the GasSafe scheme would be pointless?
Why check up on peoples work if possessing ACS is competence?
The argument is about defining competent. What is competent and to what degree should it effect gas work?
It is up to the individual if they want to take the chance with peoples lives in their own homes by assuming they are competent when they may not be.
That is the law, I never wrote it.
But I think you will find you will be taken to task many times if you start thinking possession of ACS alone is a sign of complete competence.
ACS are what they say they are National Accredited Certification Scheme. They are not training they are assessments of your competence.
In other words you have to know what your doing before you go in for one. The competence to be able to pass one is gained elsewhere and that can be anywhere.
Don't get me wrong I have said it before I agree in gas education and ACS do tend to prove a person may be competent.
But what if GasSafe inspect a private job and find it complies to all regs?
Would they tell the person they where incompetent, just because they had followed the manufacturers instructions like we all have too and have not breached the Gas Regs?
If the government want to change the law, that is okay by me, but as it stands a person can do gas fitting in their own home if they are competent to do so.
That is the law. Its not personal please don't go getting upset.
And I am not advocating people do their own gas work, all I am saying is that there is nothing to stop them if they can prove they are competent.
Hi! Beeline,
I am not advising anybody to do gas work in their own home. All I am saying is, if they are deemed competent enough to do so there is nothing to stop them.
That's the law saying that not me.
ACS are not training they are examinations of your competence. You learn how to do the things examined elsewhere. Like driving, the driving test only tests your competence to drive.
Having an ACS is not recognised as complete competence is it? If it where you would not need to have your work examined by GasSafe before they approved you.
The question is, what is competence? Certainly having an ACS goes some way to proving you know what your doing.
But supposing a person installs an appliance in their own home following manufacturers instructions and they breach no gas regs. Can you say they are not competent?
That is how the law stands and competence has not been challenged as yet.
And no I don't think it would get laughed out of court, if it was found the installation was safe.
And please note, I am not talking about faulty installations that proves incompetence.
And would you know or would they tell you if your neighbour had installed something wrongly?
Of course not probably!
While gas fitting and repair costs a bomb there is always the temptation for people to do it themselves. We can at least try and make them think twice before they do.
And don't forget people who want to do their own work can read the Gas Regs themselves and make the decision
