Consumers are warned to stay away from unlicensed installers and not to attempt to work on their electrical installation themselves.

There have been six prosecutions of unregulated electricians so far this year.

There is no specific data on fires caused by unlicensed sparks, but figures from the Fire and Emergency Services show that up to last month more than 900 fires had been caused by electrical equipment in homes, garages and sheds.

Kathryn Young, research manager at the Department for Business, Innovation and Employment, told Checkpoint they are seeing an increase in the number of potential criminals.

“I have some statistics from the last few years and they show that in the 2022-2023 season we had 51 complaints and in the 2023-2024 season we had 65.”

Young said there were many complaints about unlicensed work, sometimes by handymen who failed to keep their agreements.

“We recently had a lawsuit where this happened and the homeowners were left with an unfinished job with live wires that could pose a risk of electrical shock and house fire.”

The numbers rose steadily, Young said.

“The scale is, it could be changing a plug or rewiring a house. Obviously, the more we hear about these cases, the better we can investigate them.”

In one case, it was a plumber who replaced a boiler and then went on to do the electrical for the job. In another case, it was a handyman who left live wires everywhere.

“There was a real risk of electrocution or fire.”

The six people prosecuted were prosecuted after an investigation revealed that the employee did not have the correct permit.

“We have the evidence, then we will present it to the court.”

Sometimes there were also homeowners among the sparks.

“Homeowners are doing their own electrical work without an electrician looking at the work.”

In many cases, the work was done to save money or get it done faster, she said.

It was also important that homeowners check the qualifications of anyone hired to do work.

“The Electrical Workers Registration Board has a public registry where homeowners can check whether the person they hire is registered.”

The Healthy Homes legislation’s enactment also brought an increase in workplace complaints, she said.

By Checkpoint for rnz.co.nz