A PLUMBER convicted of carrying out dangerous and illegal gas work that put a UK family’s lives at risk had been working in Jersey just months before he was sentenced, the JEP has learned.
Benjamin Owen was employed by Island Energy for a six-month period until early January 2026, shortly before he was sentenced in the UK courts for serious gas-safety offences, the utility company confirmed following questions from this newspaper.
Owen, of St Helier, was last week given a 15-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, after Exeter Crown Court found he had carried out illegal gas work at a family home in Torquay in February 2023, putting two adults and their four young children at risk.
He had been trading in the UK as BPS and Ben the Plumber when he removed and replaced a boiler at the Devon property, despite his Gas Safe registration having lapsed in October 2021. An investigation by the UK Health and Safety Executive found the installation was dangerous, with a gas leak on the supply line classed as “immediately dangerous”.
Island Energy said it only became aware of the UK charges after the legal proceedings had concluded – and at a point when Owen was no longer employed by the company.
In a statement, an Island Energy spokesperson said: “Mr Owen is a former employee of Island Energy and worked for the company for a six-month period until early January 2026.
“Island Energy only became aware of the UK Health and Safety Executive charges after the legal proceedings had concluded and at that point Mr Owen was no longer an employee.
“During the period when he was employed by Island Energy, his work was fully supervised, checked and audited. Mr Owen had the required UK safety qualifications which were valid until 2029.”
The conviction relates to work carried out in England nearly two years before Owen’s time working in Jersey.
The UK court heard that after the Torquay family raised concerns about the boiler’s performance, Owen dismissed their worries. A second plumber later called an emergency gas provider, who discovered the leak and shut the system down. Gas Safe inspectors then identified further serious defects, with additional faults uncovered during remedial works.
Sentencing Owen, the court found him guilty of breaching the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998. In addition to the suspended sentence, he was ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and to pay £1,000 in costs.
HSE inspector Simon Jones said Owen had “knowingly” undertaken gas work without being registered, adding that his actions “put the lives of the homeowners and their four young children at risk”.
He reiterated warnings to householders to always check that anyone carrying out gas work is properly registered, stressing that failures can result in “injury and loss of life”.
Meanwhile, Jersey’s own Health and Safety Inspectorate is reminding consumers about the importance of checking that engineers have the correct qualifications.
The HSI confirmed that the legal requirements for gas work are the same in Jersey as they are in the UK.
“Anyone employed to work on gas fittings and appliances must be competent and have the correct qualifications and experience to carry out work on gas fittings safely and in accordance with industry practices,” the statement said.
“The JerseySafe Work with Gas Systems and Appliances Approved Code of Practice (ACoP) was updated in 2022.
“It includes the requirement that gas engineers working in Jersey are assessed as competent by the completion of an Accredited Certification Scheme (ACS) and are registered with the approved body, currently Gas Safe Register.”
It noted that consumers can check if their local engineer is registered on the Gas Safe Register website.
