Qualified person disciplined for failing to discharge duties in respect of prescribed inspection and repair of windows
The Registered Contractors' Disciplinary Board has completed a disciplinary inquiry under the Buildings Ordinance (BO) and decided that a Registered Minor Works Contractor (RMWC) appointed as a qualified person (QP) under the Mandatory Window Inspection Scheme (MWIS) should be disciplined for failing to discharge the duties or abide by the requirements imposed on a QP under the BO.
The Board's written decision and order issued on July 29 was published in the Gazette today (August 12). Details are available at the following link: www.gld.gov.hk/egazette/pdf/20222632/egn202226324282.pdf.
The Board ordered the RMWC to be fined $6,000 and to pay about $36,000, being the costs of the Board and the Buildings Department (BD) for conducting the inquiry.
The RMWC submitted a certificate to the BD in October 2015, certifying that the prescribed inspection had been carried out to the windows of a residential unit in Tai Po and that those windows were safe and no prescribed repair was required. Subsequently, the BD conducted an audit inspection and found that the rivets of some windows were corroded and some screws were seriously rusted.
In view of the investigation results, the BD notified the Board for consideration of disciplinary action against the RMWC under the provision of section 13(1) of the BO.
A spokesperson for the BD reiterated today that in order to ensure building safety, the BD attaches great importance to the quality of the prescribed inspection and repair of windows by a QP under the MWIS. Any QP who contravenes the relevant provisions of the BO in carrying out the prescribed inspection and repair of windows under the MWIS is subject to enforcement action under the BO.
The BD will continue to conduct audit inspections to ensure the quality of the prescribed inspection and repair of windows under the MWIS, he added.
Ends/Friday, August 12, 2022