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imposing, in respect of any prescribed class of goods, requirements which
are expedient to prevent or reduce risk of death or personal injury.
Fireguards.
Under the provisions of The Heating Appliances (Fireguards)
Regulations, 1953, it is an offence to sell any gas or electric fire, or
oil heater, suitable for use in residential premises, unless it is fitted
with an adequate guard. Generally speaking, traders do not commit
offences under these Regulations, but it is necessary to keep a careful
watch on the sale of second-hand fires from stalls in public markets.
Oil Heaters.
The Oil Heaters Regulations, 1962, prescribe certain standards of
construction, design and performance with which all unflued domestic oil
heaters manufactured after 1st June, 1962, must comply, and make it an
offence for any person to sell, or let on hire, or hire purchase, or
have in his possession for sale, any such heater or component part
thereof not complying with the Regulations.
In view of the concern expressed at the increasing number of deaths
which were caused by the use of unsatisfactory oil heaters, the former
Kensington Council, in April, 1964, asked the Metropolitan Boroughs'
Standing Joint Committee to make representations to the Secretary of
State for Home Affairs, to secure the amendment of the Regulations so
that they applied to all oil heaters irrespective of their date of
manufacture. As a result of these representations and consultations
with other interested bodies, the Secretary of State in pursuance of
Sections 1 and 2 of the Consumer Protection Act,196l, made the Oil
Heaters Regulations,1966, which became operative on 1st June, 1966.
These Regulations make further requirements in respect of the
construction, design and performance of oil heaters and these
requirements apply in future to all oil heaters whether new or secondhand
irrespective of their date of manufacture.
The new Regulations make more detailed provision for testing the
performance of an oil heater when tilted out of level and impose a
limit on the proportion of carbon monoxide which may be emitted by an
oil heater. They also impose appropriate requirements on certain oil
heaters, in particular wick-fed heaters, relating to the spilling of
fuel when an oil heater is overturned, and to the corrosion-resistance
of fuel containers.
A circular letter drawing attention to these important amendments
in the law was sent to all known local traders (shopkeepers, stallholders
and auctioneers) who retail oil heaters, and to all oil
distributors. In addition, in order to ensure that this matter was as
widely publicised as possible, the Kensington and Chelsea Chamber of
Commerce were approached and asked to co-operate with the Council by
including a short summary of the letter addressed to local traders in
the next issue of their newsletter, and they agreed to report the
salient facts in their September issue. An approach was also made to
the Hammersmith and Kensington Trades Council asking for this matter
to be brought to the attention of their members. The local Press
co-operated in drawing attention to the Regulations by publishing
letters from the Chairman of the Health Committee in which she advised
all owners of old oil heaters to have them checked and serviced before
the winter, and suggested that any person buying a new oil heater
should obtain from the vendor an assurance that it complied in every
respect with both the old and new Regulations.
A short reference to the new Regulations appeared in the
September issue of the Council's Civic Affairs Bulletin.