A family today demanded electricity laws be changed after an inquest ruled a mother-of-two was fatally electrocuted when she touched her bath taps with wet hands.

Thirza Whittall's body was found by her five-year-old daughter Millie six days after the family, including husband Fred and two-year-old son George, had moved to the rented property in Portscatho, Cornwall, from the West Midlands.

An inquest heard that the 33-year-old died on March 28 last year because a faulty heater and a lack of earth bonding under the enamel bath combined to turn the metal bath taps into a live electrical conductor.

The inquest, held yesterday in Truro, Cornwall, was told that the house did not have a safe electricity circuit and that Mr Whittall, 35, had asked for a safety trip switch to be installed.

The court was told the work was not carried out before the Whittalls moved in.

Mrs Whittall, whose husband was away at the time of the incident, was electrocuted after she part-filled the bath with water and touched the taps with wet hands.

Mr Whittall said: "As we have learned to our cost, a fault in an electrical installation is every bit as dangerous as a faulty gas supply.

"Steps should be taken to ensure that the same standard of care is required in relation to all potential hazards at a property so that no other family should suffer as we have."

His mother Judy said the family were devastated by the death and were "angered" to discover there was no legal obligation for the landlord to secure the electric circuit for a single occupancy property.

She said: "The laws for electricity are different than for gas and that has to change.

"If you let a multi-occupancy property to three different people everything has to be checked, if you rent a single occupancy cottage to a family of four it doesn't.

"We thought there could be a police prosecution, but were told there is no law to prosecute under."

Jonathan Keam, an electrician who was asked to inspect the cottage, told the hearing that it was "not electrically safe".

He said Mrs Whittall was electrocuted because of a faulty electric oil radiator which had shorted, causing the bath, water, taps and waste pipe to become live.

He told the court rental properties only required an electrical safety certificate if they were in multi-occupancy, adding that the cottage's electrics were around 30 to 35 years old.

The inquest was told the circuit had not been checked since 1981 and that tests established the taps were carrying a 175-volt charge.

Coroner Andrew Cox, who recorded a verdict of accidental death, said: "The property has since been rewired at a cost of £4,000.

"Regrettably, this does not help Mrs Whittall.

"This case will have certainly reminded everyone here of the potential perils of electricity in our homes, and the fact that there is no legislation for required regulated checks seems inexplicable."