COMPLIANCE
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if we explain that it is the law that has changed, that
it is for the safety of their clients, and that nobody is
questioning their work.”
Shabangu also works on Saturdays, as many
homeowners cannot get away during the week and
this is the only time available. Dogs are the constant
challenge of home visits, with some homes having as
many as five. The home on Orange Street sure enough
had a pitbull that would reportedly attack any stranger
on sight but was safely locked away.
Claitos Sithole, a qualified plumber with Plumbing
Johannesburg, explained that he was from a different
team to that which had done the initial installation.
This job was complicated by the attachment of a heat
pump which had not worked for some weeks and
required the use of the geyser element to provide hot
water. Representing the homeowner, Jonathan Lotter,
was his mother, Elizabeth Lotter. Including technicians
for the heat pump, there had been several visits.
Mrs Elizabeth Lotter greets the fifth team trying to address her cold water problem.
Remedial work was well underway by the time the
compliance officer and journalist left the premises an
hour later. “They are currently replacing the pressure
control valve (at their expense) which is currently
making a sound when you open the tap at the basin,”
said Shabangu, “And they are putting in more support
for the pipes.” The plumber had determined the
reason why the heat pump was not working and had
taken photos of the problem for Mrs Lotter to refer the
matter back to the insurance company.
“It was an insurance claim, so the plumber came
for the geyser replacement not the heat pump. The
insurance company has been made aware of the
problem with the heat pump and is supposed to send
someone to fix that [provided it is an insurable loss],”
adds Shabangu. PA
November 2019 Volume 25 I Number 9
Sipho Motha, a plumber employed by Churchill Plumbing
www.plumbingafrica.co.za