A construction company and its director have been ordered to pay more than £4,000 after displaying signs that falsely implied the business was part of a national accreditation scheme for competence in electrical work, following an investigation by Hillingdon Council.
Heatwave Construction Ltd was represented by company director Gurcharan Singh Chahal at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday 9 December, where he admitted charges of engaging in an unfair commercial practice.
The court was told that the council’s trading standard team was notified by the National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting (NICEIC) on 27 August 2024, that a van for Heatwave Construction Ltd, operating out of Royal Lane, Uxbridge, was displaying its logos on their van without authorisation.
On 30 August 2024, council officers sent a letter advising the business it was not entitled to use the branding, but no response was received, so a follow-up letter was hand-delivered on 10 October, with a 14-day deadline for compliance. Despite this, the logo was still on the van when the trading standards team visited in person on 7 November 2024.
In November 2024, the council was notified by NICEIC that Chahal was not, and never had been registered with them, nor authorised to use its branding, logo or certification marks. The council was further informed in June 2025 that Heatwave Construction Ltd had previously been registered as a NICEIC certified contractor between 16 December 2019 and 4 January 2024 but were no longer authorised after that date.
The court was told that Chahal was invited to attend an interview with trading standards under caution on 21 January 2025 and again on 20 February, but he failed to attend both times.
Cllr Wayne Bridges, Hillingdon Council’s Cabinet Member for Community and Environment, said: “We are committed to keeping residents safe and will always take the strongest possible action against those seeking to deceive people for financial gain.
“Through the deliberate misuse of this logo, customers would believe they were hiring a company adhering to the highest standards of safety and despite multiple warnings and opportunities to remove them, they haven’t.
“This business now faces a significant financial penalty, so I hope this result serves as a clear warning that we will not tolerate such fraudulent behaviour in Hillingdon.”
At last week’s sentencing, Judge Kathryn Verghis gave Chahal credit for the guilty plea, but said: “You would have had clear economic advantage which could have had deadly consequences.”
Heatwave Construction Ltd was ordered to pay £480, a victim surcharge of £192 and the council’s prosecution costs of £1,657.
Chahal was handed a conditional discharge for 12 months, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £26 and prosecution costs of £1,657.
