THE discovery of a potentially lethal gas fire and heater landed a North-East landlord in court yesterday.

As a result of a tenant's complaint, Hartlepool Borough Council asked the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to investigate Middlesbrough-based company, Discount Properties.

It discovered that potentially fatal carbon monoxide was escaping into the bathroom and living room of the house in Windsor Street, Hartlepool.

Both appliances were immediately disconnected.

And yesterday, the company, which has an annual turnover of nearly £250,000 from the 60 homes it runs across Teesside, pleaded guilty at Hartlepool Magistrates' Court to a charge of failing to ensure the safety of gas fittings.

Representing the HSE, Alun Williams said the tenant had only been in the property for six months when he began experiencing serious problems.

He said: "The burner and jets of the gas fire were dirty with lint and deposits, indicating a lack of maintenance, and it was producing carbon monoxide.

"The HSE inspector immediately cut off the gas supply and labelled the equipment as dangerous."

He added: "The tenant could possibly have been exposed to dangerous levels of carbon monoxide, which may have created serious health problems or could possibly have proved fatal."

In mitigation, Alan Rudge said the company had placed its trust in one of its employees to service the equipment properly but, since the court summons, had changed its operating systems.

The engineer who carried out inspection work on the gas appliances days before the tenant took over the house was an employee of Discount Properties, but could not be traced for the court hearing, Mr Rudge told the court.

He said the company expected the engineer, who was Corgi-registered, to be responsible for making a record of required repairs, but this did not happen.

"As we have been unable to contact the person who carried out the work we are unable to get to the bottom of how the situation arose in such a short time," said Mr Rudge.

Magistrates' chairman Eric Priest said: "It is our belief that potential harm was quite significant."

He fined the company £3,000 and ordered it to pay £3,000 towards court costs.

Speaking after the case, an HSE spokesman said: "Every year, about 25 to 30 people die from carbon monoxide poisoning and many others also suffer ill health. These deaths are predominantly caused by gas appliances and flues that have not been properly installed or maintained."

* In 1995, The Northern Echo launched its Silent Killer campaign following the death of a North-East student. It continues to press for a huge advertising campaign to warn of the dangers to be funded by a compulsory levy on gas suppliers.

Read more about the Silent Killer campaign here.