Home Insurance
Home Insurance
DIY poses risk says coroner
Thu, 14 Jul 2005
A DIY enthusiast died after being electrocuted by a shower he fitted himself, an inquest has heard.
Technician Mark Eldon, aged 27, died at his house in Bridgend, south Wales, last December because of the incorrectly installed shower.
Recording a verdict of accidental death by electrocution, Bridgend coroner Philip Walters warned people doing DIY that they were risking their lives.
He said: "It is clear that this has arisen from faulty electrical installation.
"It is essential that electrical installations are professionally fitted so these incidents can be avoided."
After the hearing, Mr Eldon's mother, Maureen Hodgson, described the incident as "a horrendous accident" and said her son had been "a lovely boy" and "a gentleman".
"He worked very hard and was struggling to get his house renovated," she added. "He was doing it all by himself."
Mr Eldon had spent six years restoring his terraced house in Rees Row and was using an extension lead from his mother's house next door for his electricity supply at the time of the accident.
An investigator for the Health and Safety Executive, Mark Gilson, told the inquest that the shower unit had been "sub-standardly installed" and "the system was unsafe".
"There were no earthing devices in the house and the shower was not wired properly," he added.
The news is again likely to underline the importance of home insurance as well as that of life insurance.
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