An electrician has been fined $5,000 after a serious installation error at a Geraldton home caused electric shocks, prompting a reminder from WA’s energy safety regulator that all electrical work must be checked and tested.
Following prosecution by the Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety’s Building and Energy division, the electrical worker pleaded guilty at Geraldton Magistrates Court to breaching the Electricity (Licensing) Regulations 1991.
The person is not named because the court granted a spent conviction.
The court was told the electrician attended the Bluff Point property after the homeowner engaged an electrical company in November 2023 to undertake upgrades to the property’s electrical installation. As part of those works, the electrician replaced the cabling between the network meter and the main switch within the switchboard.
Over the next three days after the work, the homeowner and a family member received electric shocks in separate incidents while tiling the bathroom and laying turf outside.
An inspection by Western Power found the connection of the active and neutral load conductors at the meter was transposed, causing all parts of the house connected to the earthing system, such as water pipes and taps, to become live with electricity.
In court on 20 March 2026, Magistrate Andrew Wadham noted the electrician’s early guilty plea and medical issues, but emphasised the seriousness of the offence, stating it can only take one shock to kill someone. Costs of $968 were awarded.
WA’s Director of Energy Safety, Daniel Kearney, said it was fortunate that no one was seriously injured or killed.
“The consequences could have been devastating, clearly showing why electrical work must be done correctly every time, including carrying out mandatory checks and tests,” Mr Kearney said.
“This case should remind all electricians, and the electrical contractors that employ them, that they must have robust procedures to be confident that all electrical installing work is safe and compliant.
“This incident is a timely reminder that if anyone experiences a shock or tingle from their tap or other metal objects, they should immediately report the incident to the network operator, such as Western Power or Horizon Power, as the homeowner correctly did in this case.”
More information about electrical safety at home, including electric shocks and reporting is available at the Building and Energy website.
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Media contact: BEmedia@lgirs.wa.gov.au
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