Ontario resident fined for installing furnace without authorization

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Zhoufeng Yu, sole director of Lucky Air Systems operating in the Greater Toronto Area, pled guilty on Friday to one count of repairing a natural gas appliance without a gas technician certificate issued by the Technical Standard and Safety Authority (TSSA). The Ontario Court of Justice ordered Yu to pay a total fine of $7,000 for both counts, plus a 25 per cent victim surcharge.

Yu was also found guilty of one count of knowingly making a false statement or furnishing false information, which are considered offenses under the Technical Standards and Safety Act.

According to the TSSA, Yu, who has not held a valid certificate since 2018, entered into a verbal contract with a Toronto homeowner to repair a natural gas furnace, which had previously been issued a hazard tag by Enbridge Gas. The TSSA also says that Yu signed the hazard tag with the name of another individual that held a valid TSSA certificate, thereby indicating under someone else’s legal authority that the hazard had been cleared.

“Improper installation and poor work have been identified as major contributing factors to fuels- and carbon monoxide-related safety risks in people’s homes,” said Sam Sadeghi, director of fuels safety for the TSSA. “Hiring only those authorized by TSSA to perform fuel-related work is essential to safeguarding one’s health and wellbeing.”

www.tssa.org