From: Jon Vanstone, Chair, Certass
A new survey of more than 120 installers has flagged some of the top issues facing them today. The data, collected from Certass member companies, highlighted the frustration felt by installers regarding illegal and unregistered window installations by ‘cowboy’ and ‘unregulated’ fitters.
Responses to the survey, which was open throughout May, included comments such as: ‘Help us to identify illegal installations’, ‘Chase the Government on the unregulated fitter’ and ‘What bothers me is that there are so many window installers that are still not registered…and continue to trade without being fined’.
Does the new BSR hold answers for these frustrated installers?
This member feedback gives a clear position that our best-practice installers are fed-up with seeing poor installations and frustrated that companies who continue to cut corners are getting away with it.
As we have discussed extensively at the recent FIT Show, and in our online webinars, the new Building Safety Regulator comes with new enforcement powers, never before seen in our sector. The involvement of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) means that there are adequate resources to target and prosecute non-compliant contractors and their work.
There are many questions and much hesitation around the incoming regulator; particularly with tradespeople’s concerns on the impact that it will have on our sector. The evidence I have seen so far is that the BSR isn’t there to trip us up – but it will serve to make life difficult for those who carry out work without regard for the Building Regulations, or the health and safety of building occupants.
At Certass, we welcome all feedback, however trivial it may seem, so we can make running your business easier for those who choose us as their certification partner. What was surprising was that most of the suggestions we received were targeted at the wider sector, as opposed to the nuts-and-bolts changes to BSR.
Other suggestions included building relationships with more manufacturers to help them offer better guarantees and higher quality products and pushing to make double glazing a sought-after trade for young people. One respondent added: ‘I think a big name like Certass, who truly cares about the industry, could actually make something like this happen.’
