On 29 January 2025, a local manufacturer of custom campers was sentenced in the Caboolture Magistrates Court for breaching section 40C of the Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld) (‘the Act’), having failed to comply with its primary duty to ensure the work conducted was electrically safe.

The defendant imported caravan and slide-on campervan shells from overseas and did the construction and fit-out of them for customers. The Director of the company was the only paid employee of the business. The employee did not hold an electrical license, nor was he trained in how to perform electrical installation.

On 9 March 2021, a customer engaged the defendant to construct and fit-out a slide-on campervan with an expected completion rate of 16 weeks. On 26 June 2022, the defendant delivered the campervan and advised that a new hot water unit was required because it did not work; and the oven installed was not able to be used on gas. The manufacturer had recalled that oven. The customer had paid a total of $66,000.

A full inspection of the campervan was conducted on 13 July 2022. The customer observed a burnt off earth wire hanging out of the cupboard, unprotected live terminals of the battery, exposed power outlets behind appliances, power outlets in wet areas, and the oven connected to gas.

On 30 July 2022, the defendant returned with a licensed electrician. The gas was turned on to test the hot water but instead filled the campervan with gas. There was no resolution of the electrical concerns.

The customer reported the defendant to the Electrical Safety Office. The investigation revealed multiple defects in the defendant’s electrical work and failures to comply with Australian Standard AS/NZS 3000:2018 (‘Wiring Rules’), including:

1. Unprotected ‘live’ socket outlets;
2. Unprotected electrical wiring;
3. Inadequately insulating conductors;
4. Unsuitable segregation of different voltage levels, and other services;
5. Failing to install safety switch protection;

Further, the defendant’s work was not compliant with the Australian Standard AS/NZS 3001:2008 for electrical installations in transportable structures and vehicles, including:

1. Failing to install strain relief;
2. Failing to install overcurrent protection;
3. Power supply exceeded the maximum rating of the supply lead; and

The installation of the residual current devices (RCD) was connected in a way that failed to protect the final subcircuits due to a transposition in the wiring of the changeover switch. This resulted in the alternative supply connecting 240 volts alternating current (VAC) to the mains supply. Direct contact with voltage greater than 50VAC can result in fatal shock.

The combination of any and all of these deficiencies made the campervan electrically unsafe and exposed any person to risk of death, shock or serious injury.

Magistrate Blanch, in sentencing the defendant, had regard to the maximum penalty for the offence, and noted that general and specific deterrence were important sentencing considerations. His Honour also had regard for the period of offending, the trust customers put in the defendant to provide a safe transportable home, and told the Director he was very lucky he didn’t kill himself during the fit-out, let alone the customers not being harmed when they took possession of the campervan.

In mitigation, Magistrate Blanch took into account the early plea of guilty, the cooperation with the investigation, the lack of prior convictions, and the apologies offered by the Director on behalf of the defendant company at sentence.

Magistrate Blanch convicted and fined the corporate defendant $40,000 and exercised his discretion not to record a conviction.

OWHSP contact: enquiries@owhsp.qld.gov.au