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Contractor fined for doing electrical work without licence

June 21, 2013, Mississauga, ON –
An unlicensed contractor was convicted in a Sudbury, Ont. court of charges related to performing electrical work illegally and failing to apply for an inspection.

George St. Louis, a sub-contractor working in Chelmsford, Ont., was found guilty of both charges with a total fine of $4,000 plus a $1,000 victim impact surcharge. All fees are paid to the Court.

A victim impact surcharge is an additional monetary penalty that is used to provide programs, services and assistance to victims within the provincial jurisdiction. Under Ontario Regulations, licensing of Electrical Contractors and Master Electricians, only licensed electrical contractors are permitted to perform electrical work.

St. Louis was sub-contracted by a siding company to replace siding and windows. In the course of the installation, he moved some light fixtures and an electrical outlet. He did not hold a valid electrical contractor licence and was not legally allowed to perform the electrical work.

“Unfortunately, there are individuals that are prepared to do electrical work when they don’t hold the appropriate licence and they don’t follow the rules and regulations. If you hire them or your general contractor hires them, you may end up with unsafe electrical wiring, and may need to arrange to have a licenced electrical contractor make repairs to their work,” said Doug Crawford, ESA’s chief public safety officer.
“We remind anyone considering hiring someone to do electrical work to follow the three Cs: check to ensure the contractor holds a valid electrical contractor licence (you can search the database at www.esasafe.com); confirm that they are arranging the appropriate inspections from ESA; and call ESA at 1-877-ESA-SAFE (1-877-372-7233) if you suspect someone is misrepresenting themselves.”

ESA reminds everyone of the requirements to ensure that the individual hired to perform electrical work has a valid ECRA/ESA Electrical Contractor Licence. This will ensure that the Electrical Contractor you have hired:

 is fully insured

 uses qualified electricians to perform the electrical work you require

 will arrange for permits with the ESA

 can deliver an ESA Certificate of Inspection