Contractor fined $30K for unsafe electrical work

An electrical contractor has been fined $30,000 for failing to comply with section 30 of the Electrical Safety Act 2002, to ensure his business or undertaking was conducted in a way which was electrically safe. The failure exposed a person to a risk of death or serious injury.

On 13 July 2018, a worker employed by a company installing edge protection on the roof of a shed in Gatton, in the Lockyer Valley region of Queensland, for the defendant, sustained serious electrical injuries when the metal rail he was holding contacted a high-voltage overhead power line.

In sentencing, Magistrate Belinda Merrin considered the gravity of the offending, the need for general deterrence and the substantial ongoing impact to the victim. The Magistrate also considered that this was the defendant’s first offence, as well as the defendant’s early guilty plea, remorse and otherwise good character.

At a hearing in the Brisbane Magistrates Court, the defendant was fined $30,000, plus court costs of just over $1600. No conviction was recorded.

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