Firm breached health and safety regulations after it failed to ensure subcontractor did not cut through live gas pipe

Construction firm Keltbray has been prosecuted after a breach of safety regulations caused a fire.

The south-west London firm pleaded guilty at Bracknell magistrates court, and was fined £18,000 for breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act. It was also ordered to pay full costs of £20,469 and a victim surcharge of £15.

The prosecution came about after an incident in August 2006, when Keltbray was principal contractor for the refurbishment of a retail unit in the Queensmere shopping centre in Slough. Keltbray failed to ensure all services had been switched off before the subcontractor cut through a live gas pipe, causing a fire.

Karen Morris, a HSE inspector, said: "Companies need clear, manageable and reliable systems to ensure people are not put at risk in these situations. In this case, the subcontractor was given a document confirming that it was safe to carry out the pipe-cutting work, but reasonable checks had not been made and the pipe was, in fact, live.

"Fortunately nobody was injured, although the incident caused a significant risk to the safety of site workers and members of the public. The outcome could have been much more serious."

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