05:01 pm, Thursday 11 November, 2010

A Sunshine Coast company is facing charges for using metal staplers to secure insulation in a home in Pelican Waters.

The owner and operator of the company has been charged by the Queensland’s Department of Justice and Attorney-General with breaching section 27 of the Electrical Safety Act 2002.

The charges allege that ceiling insulation was held in place by conductive metal fasteners.

The Caloundra Industrial Magistrates Court will determine if the owner conducted his business in a way that was electrically safe, and if the Electrical Safety (Installation of Ceiling Insulation) Notice 2009 was complied with.

The stemmed from an investigation of a complaint by the Electrical Safety Office, and not because of injury to a person or damage to property.

The charges are scheduled for mention at 2pm on 13 January, 2011.

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01:36 pm, Friday 15 October, 2010

A report has revealed substantial deficiencies in the federal government’s axed home insulation program, pointing out that normal risk management practices had been largely neglected.

The Auditor-General’s report, which has been released today, notes how the Department of Environment became overwhelmed by claims of fraud and safety issues in a rush to meet the scheme’s stimulus objectives.

The home insulation program was linked to four worker fatalities and several house fires.

Under the stimulus scheme, about $1.45 billion was spent to insulate 1.1 million roofs. Many of the installations were found to be deficient.

It noted that at least 29 per cent of the 13,808 homes inspected up to March had some level of quality and safety concerns.

The report says the program, which was instituted to respond to the global financial crisis, was developed in a very short amount of time.

According to Parliamentary secretary Mark Dreyfus, the report did not make adverse findings against ministers.

“The government has learnt the lessons … and we are applying them in our remediation efforts,” he said.

Mr Dreyfus noted the shortcomings in the administration of the scheme, particularly the department’s risk management practices.

“It’s very clear there were substantial deficiencies in this program,” he said.

“These shortcomings are unacceptable to the government and we will continue our work to ensure they are addressed, and not repeated.”

The Auditor-General’s report had found the department, which lacked trained staff, was not prepared for the huge demand for the program.

According to Mr Dreyfus, the government has inspected over 95,000 homes to date. He said the Auditor-General acknowledged that the government and the department had learned their lessons.

“The problems that have occurred with the home insulation program last year have not been repeated with the home insulation safety program and the foil insulation safety program.”

The report has not given any recommendations since the program had already been discontinued. However, the scheme has left safety concerns and coronial inquiries in its wake, the report says.

Mr Dreyfus says there were no recommendations given since the “problems have been identified and acted upon”.

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07:26 am, Saturday 18 September, 2010

The Rockhampton Industrial Magistrates Court has fined a Queensland firm $135,000 yesterday over the death of an insulation installer.

A 16-year-old employee of the company was electrocuted on 18 November 2009 while installing fibreglass insulation in a home in central Queensland.

The teenager was one of four workers killed during the axed home insulation program of the Federal Government. The multi-billion-dollar scheme is also being blamed for almost 100 house fires.

The company was charged with failing to conduct its business in a way that was electrically safe, and failing to ensure its workers had fall protection.

The court heard the company allowed the young man to work without ensuring the home’s electricity was turned off.

It also failed to provide training to workers in first aid in the event of an electric shock.

The court was told the firm did not have specific or documented safety procedures for insulation installation and working at heights.

Rockhampton industrial magistrate John McGrath imposed a $110,000 fine for the electrical safety breach – the biggest fine imposed for a breach of Queensland’s Electrical Safety Act.

Magistrate McGrath also handed down a $25,000 fine for the workplace health and safety violation.

Aside from the fines, the company was ordered to pay costs of $14,794.90.

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03:04 pm, Thursday 16 September, 2010

Safety switches could have saved the life of an insulation installer who was electrocuted in central Queensland last year, Master Electricians Australia (MEA) said.

A 16-year-old man was killed in November 2009 after receiving electric shock in a Rockhampton home in November while installing insulation.

In the court hearing on the young man’s death, the Rockhampton Magistrates Court heard the pre-existing defect in the home’s electrical wiring of the house was the main cause of the accident.

According to MEA chief executive Malcolm Richards, some of the accidents linked to the Federal Government’s insulation program were easily preventable.

“Safety switches are the best defence,” Mr Richards said.

He added that safety switches should be installed on all power circuits in the house.

“The lights, the stove and the hot water as well.”

Mr Richards noted that one in five existing homes have faults in their wiring.

The sentencing of the young worker’s employer will be held tomorrow.

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08:04 am, Wednesday 15 September, 2010

The employers of an insulation installer who died in central Queensland last year have pleaded guilty to violating safety laws.

A 16-year-old worker was electrocuted while working in the roof of a Rockhampton home in November 2009.

The teenager’s death is one of four linked to the insulation program of the Federal Government, which was stopped in April.

At the Rockhampton Magistrates Court yesterday, the worker’s two employers pleaded guilty to breaching the Electrical Safety Authority Act and the Workplace Health and Safety Act.

The court heard there was a pre-existing defect in the home’s electrical wiring. It was told the company’s failure to ensure a safe workplace led to the death of the young worker.

The employers’ lawyer told the court his client’s felt distressed by the accident.

The court is expected to hand down the sentence on Friday.

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05:39 pm, Friday 25 June, 2010

Insulation installers and industry groups have raised concerns that the people tasked by the Federal Government to conduct safety inspections are not properly trained.

Around 200,000 affected homes are currently being looked into by Government inspectors under the botched insulation installation scheme amid safety and fraud issues.

Around half of the 50,000 homes installed with foil insulation had been inspected.

According to National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) CEO James Tinslay, tight restrictions have been set up to ensure the workplace deaths under the discontinued insulation program will not be repeated.

“NECA has been working closely with the department to develop safe work procedures to ensure the safety of both workers and the householders,” Mr Tinslay said.

“It could be that there might be a couple of months added to that. NECA wouldn’t see that as a major issue because we know the program will be carried out correctly and we’re very happy with the procedures that have been put in place.”

However, Mr Tinslay is not as sure about the inspections being conducted, saying his group has reported apparently sloppy work by some inspectors.

“I have heard of a couple of instances where the people who were inspecting the bulk insulation didn’t meet the expectations that we would have of somebody competent to undertake the inspection,” he said.

“That is a worry; it was a few months ago and these have been passed on to the department.”

This concern was echoed by a cellulose insulation manufacturers’ group, stating that many inspectors do not have extensive experience with cellulose insulation. It said problems were often reported about the product when there are none.

The Assisting Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, Greg Combet, allays the fears on the inspection issue.

He said he is optimistic the inspections will be conducted professionally.

“We’ve done, to the best of our capacity, the work to consult with the industry using an expert advisory panel to devise the training program for inspectors to carry out the inspection work that’s been going on for some period of time now,” he said.

“I haven’t seen a shred of evidence to suggest that inappropriate results are being recorded.”

The Federal Opposition has raised concerns due to the refusal of the Government to release the program’s results.

According to Environment spokesman Greg Hunt, the numbers for defects and dangerous roofs have been withheld from the public.

“That is rightly something to which they should have access,” he said.

“The program on its current rate would take seven years to inspect every home done in seven months under the home insulation program.”

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09:37 am, Monday 17 May, 2010

It will cost taxpayers over $480 million to fix faulty ceiling insulations, Budget papers reveal.

The price tag is more than the original rebate paid for the shoddy ceiling installations.

Over one million houses had ceiling insulations installed under the $2.45 billion program. It was discontinued earlier in the year amid the death of four installers, 100 houses fires and dodgy safework procedures.

The fiasco prompted the Rudd Government to commit inspecting at least 150,000 homes and over 50,000 fitted ceilings, which may bring risk to the home dwellers.

A foil safety program has been announced, in which homeowners can choose to either have the insulation removed or a safety switch installed.

The Government has estimated in its Budget papers that the cost of checking non-foil insulated homes will cost $2200 each ceiling or a total of $339 million. The allotted rebate for installation was originally tacked at $1600.

The foil safety program will cost around $84 million over the next two years. Another $15 million will be earmarked to pay businesses that were stuck with excess insulation materials when the program was halted. A further $41.2 million will assist insulation workers for retraining or finding new work.

Treasurer Wayne Swan said the Government has been beset with problems about the rebate scheme, but added the Government was focused on fixing them.

“Yes there have been problems in the insulation program, very significant problems,” he said.

“Terrible problems when it comes to the application of workplace health and safety, terrible ones which we’ve got to get to the bottom of, which is why we’re so serious about the audit process we’re going through at the moment and making sure we get it right and fix it.”

The Government has warned shady installers, stating fraudulent rebates will be prosecuted.

A Brisbane installer and its officers were charged recently over the death of a worker from Queensland, who was killed while installing insulation last year.

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09:10 am, Wednesday 24 February, 2010

A Wagga Wagga insulation and plumbing company says it will weather the Government’s decision to put the insulation scheme on hold, although other companies are likely to downsize and suffer losses.

Accounts of haphazard insulation, injuries and house fires across the country has contributed to the decision to suspend the program until June 2010.

Power’s Plumbing & Insulation’ John Dohl said they don’t worry about losing money since they don’t limit themselves to just one service.

“We already had a lot of stock on hand because we are suppliers for the Riverina and carry quite a big stock,” he said.

“We might have to stand some people down later, but at this stage we won’t be.”

He said the Government’s decision is a good way to force installers businesses out of businesses who do not follow proper safety procedures.

“The dodgy ones out there over-extended themselves,” he said.

“People have just been too greedy, and WorkCover should have given out big enough fines for unsafe work practices to stop these people cutting corners.”

Mr Dohl said the companies who offer only insulation services will suffer and lose business.

“It’s not everybody’s fault and there are good companies who are only set up for insulation, but unfortunately you can’t be one-dimensional,” he said.

“We are going back to how the system used to be and that’s going to be a lot better because there will be control over these companies rather than just open slather for anyone.”

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