John Charles Alliston · Prevention of Future Deaths report

On the 9th June 2017 I commenced an investigation into the death of John Charles Alliston. The investigation concluded at the end of the jury inquest on the 1st May 2019. The conclusion of the Jury was a hybrid short form conclusion of Accidental Death and a narrative conclusion. The medical cause of death was 1A electrocution.

Mr and Mrs Alliston moved into a private rental property at the end of May 2017. On the 8th June 2017 Mr Alliston was found lying face down in the garden of his property with a wire clutched in his right hand. He had sustained a fatal electric shock injury from this wire. He was pronounced deceased at scene. The wire was identified as a capillary wire associated with the oil heating system. A fault on the hot water system had made the capillary wire live. Two further faults directly contributed to Mr Alliston’s death. There was no residual current protection of the circuit to the water heater. Secondly there was no equipotential bonding of the metallic services to the property. If the electrical installation had been inspected in accordance with BS7671 these latter two faults would have been identified and the installation would have been assessed as unsatisfactory.

Currently there is no mandatory requirement for electrical installations in the private rental sector to be inspected to the requirements of BS7671. I acknowledge that legislation is due to be coming into force. However it remains unclear when this is going to occur. In the meantime, there remains a risk of further deaths occurring.