A landlord's guide to gas safety

This guide will help landlord’s to understand the gas safety responsibilities expected of them to protect themselves and their tenants. Landlord’s have a duty of care, which means that they are responsible for up-to-date safety checks on all gas appliances within the property. 

We’ve provided some vital information and links to government guidance to help you. haart also has helpful guides for landlords on fire safety and gas safety certificates

What are a landlord’s responsibilities for gas safety?

The government outlines private renting responsibilities for landlords stating:

Landlords must:

• make sure gas equipment they supply is safely installed and maintained by a Gas Safe registered engineer
• have a registered engineer do an annual gas safety check on each appliance and flue
• give you a copy of the gas safety check record before you move in, or within 28 days of the check

This is based on legislation called The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, but essentially means that as a landlord, it is your responsibility to make sure all gas appliances, fittings, chimneys, and flues are safe and working efficiently. If the property you are letting has gas appliances in it, there are three legal responsibilities:

1. Completing gas safety checks
2. Maintaining a Landlord Gas Safety Record
3. Maintenance on all gas pipework, appliances, chimneys, and flues

What's the difference between a gas safety record and a landlord's gas safety record?

A Gas Safety Record is the documentation that a gas engineer provides after they've done gas work. A landlord’s one is simply the same documentation, but for a rented property. The difference is that it has to be provided to the tenants as well as a copy kept by the landlord for proof of safety checks being carried out regularly.

By law, a copy of a gas safety record should be given to current tenants within 28 days of any gas safety checks and at the start of a tenancy for new tenants.

Maintenance

Check the gas appliances’ manufacturer guidelines to find out how often a service is recommended for each applicance in the property. If you cannot find these, an annual service is recommended. A Gas Safe engineer will be able to tell you if an appliance needs more than this and you should follow their advice.

Additional gas safety tips

As well as regular checks and keeping documents, here are some additional tips:

• Make sure your tenants know where and how to turn the gas off and what to do in the event of a gas emergency.
• Make sure it’s always a Gas Safe registered and qualified engineer that’s carrying out gas work or a gas safety check. Landlords are legally required to make sure this is the case and it’s an important step to maintaining your tenants’ safety.
• A gas safety check does not cover installation pipework (which means any pipework that is used to connect a gas appliance to other installation pipework), however the Health and Safety Executive HSE recommend you ask an engineer to check it when they undertake a gas safety check.

How much does a landlord gas safety check cost?

There is no fixed price for a gas safety check and certificates; the cost depends on the Gas Safe engineer you choose.

Pricing will differ depending on location, the amount of gas appliances within the property and any repairs that need to be made.

haart supports landlords

Thinking of letting? At haart, we’re on a mission to get your property let. See our dedicated landlord’s hub and contact our friendly staff at your local branch.

Be sure to check out haart’s Top tips for landlords, too.