May 13, 2019
The Electrical Safety Office has warned that anyone who bought a submersible Kasa water pump online should stop using it immediately.
The importer of the pumps, Zoran Kacavenda, was recently fined $1.2 million in Townsville Magistrates Court for failing to meet his obligations under electrical safety laws.
This follows the death of a woman in North Queensland in 2017 linked to the faulty Chinese-made water pumps.
Kacavenda, the sole director of online business the Pump Factory Pty Ltd, pleaded guilty as an individual and as a business to breaches of the Electrical Safety Act 2002 which caused the woman’s death.
The court heard that in March 2016 the Pump Factory purchased hundreds of submersible water pumps from a Chinese manufacturer before selling them online in Australia under its own name and as Kasa Pumps and Kasa Factory.
Kacavenda and the Pump Factory failed to ensure the devices were electrically safe and met the relevant Australian Standard before doing so.
The ESO led the investigation into the death and found the pumps were of substandard quality and poorly designed, allowing internal wires to tangle, rip out of their connections and come into contact with the metal body of the pump.
Of equal concern, the investigation also found the home had no electrical safety switch installed on the circuit the pump was plugged into, which could have prevented the tragedy.
An ESO spokesperson said the ruling was a stark reminder for importers to ensure their products were safe before importing or offering them for sale in Australia.
Anyone who imports electrical goods for sale in Australia must ensure they meet Australian standards and are tested to be electrically safe.
The spokesperson said most of the faulty pumps sold in Queensland had been returned to the supplier, but anyone who still owned one of them should stop using it immediately and contact Pump Factory Pty Ltd through sales@kasafactory.com or 1300-718-025 to organise a refund.
- External link: Recall notice
