Following the news last month that a 79-year-old man died after falling in a scalding hot bath at his Romford home, the Director of Inta is calling for more to be done to avoid such incidents.
Stuart Gizzi is said to have long campaigned about the importance of anti-scald products, urging installers to make the safe choice when selecting and fitting bathroom products.
Stuart commented: “Yet again we are talking about another avoidable death caused by scalding in a bathroom that could have – and should have – been equipped better and safer.”
The Romford pensioner is believed to have fallen while getting showered, accidently knocking the hot tap which poured scalding water onto his leg. He was unable to stand up and lay helpless for hours, which led to loss of fluid so severe he suffered kidney failure and died in hospital nine days later.
Stuart continued: “Had that tap been fitted with an anti-scald device, this tragedy could have been prevented. A basic TMV2 or TMV3 compliant valve costs no more than £40 – it is not expensive when you’re talking about the difference between life and death.”
TMV2 and TMV3 certified valves offer the highest level of accreditation of anti-scald thermostatic mixing valves. It is believed that by correctly installing and maintaining approved thermostatic mixing valves, it could help prevent hundreds of thousands of tragic scalding accidents.
Stuart said: “I can’t reiterate enough how important the fitting of a TMV-approved fitting is. For years we have concentrated on educating the plumbing and heating industry about scalding but it’s clear that more still needs to be done.”
Over the last decade Inta has been manufacturing TMV-approved products as well as publishing an anti-scald booklet, of which more than three million copies have been handed out to installers and the trade.
Inta also has a £100,000 training and technical suite at its Staffordshire headquarters for training merchants and engineers, as well as developing a e-learning platform to enable plumbers and merchants to learn more about TMV2 and TMV3.
Stuart concluded: “Since 2002 when we launched our company with what has become Britain’s best-selling anti-scald valve, we have worked tirelessly to make products better, cheaper and easier to fit.
“We won’t stop campaigning about the importance of anti-scald devices until these avoidable deaths are actually avoided.”
