An electrician has been fined $4,000 for failing to install an essential safety feature at a house under construction in Dalkeith.
At Perth Magistrates Court on 25 March 2025, Daniel Terranova (EW180726) pleaded guilty to breaching the Electricity (Licensing) Regulations 1991 following prosecution by Building and Energy.
The court heard Mr Terranova attended the building site in November 2021 to remove a temporary power point used by workers and install the wiring and control components for the property’s permanent electricity supply.
Mr Terranova energised the electrical installation and used power and lights during testing. As the installation was connected to the electricity supply, it was required to comply with the Australian Wiring Rules.
The installation remained connected to the electricity supply when Mr Terranova left the site, but it did not comply with the wiring rules because a key part of the earthing system, the multiple earthed neutral (MEN) link, was missing from the interior switchboard.
Without an MEN, protective devices such as circuit breakers and fuses may not operate quickly to shut off power if an electrical fault occurs.
To try to prevent use of the installation in that state, Mr Terranova switched off the power and attached an “out of service” tag on the main exterior switchboard, with a written warning not to turn on the power, before leaving the site.
Two days later a Western Power inspector discovered the home’s electrical installation was energised and the MEN link was missing. The inspector made the installation safe by removing the fuses from the meter.
The court was told the measures taken by Mr Terranova did not ensure the non-compliant installation was safe and unable to be used. Mr Terranova should have mechanically isolated the power supply to the house – for example, by disconnecting supply cables or using a locking device on a main switch or circuit breaker – to prevent inadvertent energisation.
In court, Magistrate Catherine Crawford noted the MEN was “a significant part of the safety system” that “had to be in place or the site had to be mechanically isolated so there could not be power on the site”. Without either of these actions, Her Honour said there was a risk to tradespeople on site who might use power.
WA’s Director of Energy Safety, Saj Abdoolakhan, said he hoped the case sent a strong message to electricians about the importance of effective isolations for hazardous or incomplete work.
“Without proper lock-out measures in place, this electrical installation could still be used while a key part of the earthing system was missing,” Mr Abdoolakhan said.
“With no MEN installed, anyone on site would be at risk of serious injury or even death from an electric shock if a fault occurred. I urge all electrical workers and electrical contractors to reflect on the serious consequences and prioritise safety every time.”
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Media contact: BEmedia@demirs.wa.gov.au
