Gas Safety Week 2024

Gas Safety Week 2024 - Every Check Counts - A Landlord's Legal Responsibilities

Gas Safety Week is an annual week to raise the awareness of Gas Safety and the importance of taking care of your gas appliances. It is coordinated by Gas Safe Register, the official list of Gas Engineers who are legally allowed to work on Gas installations. 

The theme for 2024 is Checking—Every Check Counts; from checking that you’re complying with your legal gas responsibilities as a Landlord, to checking that you and your Contract Holders know what to do in a gas emergency. Every check no matter how big or small helps to ensure the safety of your Contract Holders and that your property is Gas Safe!

Here are just some of the legal obligations a Landlord has in Wales when it comes to Gas Safety in a rental property:

An annual gas check is a legal requirement and must be carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer to ensure appliances, gas pipework and flues provided are safe and in good working order. Badly fitted and poorly serviced gas appliances can cause gas leaks, fires, explosions, and carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

All gas equipment (including any appliance left by a previous Contract Holder) is safe or otherwise removed before re-letting.

A Gas Safety Record must be provided to the Contract Holder within 28 days of completing the check or prior to when they move in. You can be reported to the HSE if you don’t provide one and it can also result in problems if you ever need to serve notice in the future, so it’s important to remember to provide this to your Contract Holder! You must also keep a copy of the Gas Safety Record until a further two checks have taken place.

A British Standard EN 50291 Carbon Monoxide (CO) alarm is required to be fitted in every habitable room of a rental property containing gas appliances (excluding appliances used for cooking purposes). CO is a highly poisonous gas that can kill quickly with no warning, as you cannot see it, taste it, or smell it. As a Landlord, you are required to carry out checks and tests to ensure that all carbon monoxide alarms are working before any new Contract begins.

Here's some additional information for both Landlords and Contract Holders to stay Gas safe:

• Check for warning signs that could indicate a gas appliance is not working correctly. These may include but aren't limited to - lazy yellow/orange flames instead of crisp blue ones, black marks on or around an appliance, a pilot light that keeps going out, too much condensation in the room, or error messages on the appliance’s control panel. If in doubt always get a qualified Gas Safe registered Engineer to check your appliance or contact your Landlord or Agent.
• Check that vents or flues are not blocked. Vents and flues are to ensure gas appliances work safely; blocking them could prevent this.
• Check your knowledge. Remember the six main symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning: headaches, dizziness, breathlessness, nausea, collapse, and loss of consciousness.
• Check before doing DIY. Before drilling or hammering, check that there is no risk of hitting a gas pipe. Never carry out any DIY on a gas appliance; if you suspect there is something wrong with the appliance or it is not working correctly, call a Gas Safe registered engineer.