Why You Need Annual Gas Safety Checks

The best way to ensure that you have trouble-free gas appliances together with safe heating and cooking is to have an annual gas safety check.

The last thing you want is gas and carbon monoxide leaks from pipes and appliances or a build-up of gas trapped in a blocked flue because the result could potentially be lethal.

An annual check on your gas pipes, flues and gas appliances by a Gas Safe engineer will ensure that you have a system fit for purpose. If you are a landlord, you are legally required to have a gas safety check, carried out by a qualified Gas Safe engineer, annually on your properties. It is also part of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 that employers and self-employed persons maintain gas appliances, pipes and flues in a safe condition.

How To Recognise A Gas Safe Engineer

Only qualified Gas Safe engineers are legally allowed to work on gas appliances. A registered Gas Safe engineer will be able to produce a Gas Safe badge which has a yellow triangle with ‘Gas safe’ written inside it. If you are not sure of the credentials of the gas engineer who visits you, you can call the Gas Safe Register on 0800 408 5500 or visit the Gas Safe website and check their licence number for yourself.

All Plumbers4U gas engineers are Gas Safe registered.

What A Gas Safety Check Entails

There are a couple of different types of gas safety checks.

1. A gas Appliance Safety Check will ensure that:

• The appliance is suitable for its location.
• The appliance is connected correctly to the gas pipes.
• The appliance and its flue are working correctly.
• The air supply to the appliance is adequate.
• All safety measures are in place.

2. A Gas Installation Safety Check will ensure that:

• The appliance is working safely and efficiently.
• The gas pipes which supply the appliance are suitable, correctly fitted and free from leaks.

Reasons To Have A Gas Safety Check

• • The NHS states that there are about 60 deaths each year from accidental carbon monoxide poisoning in England and Wales.
  • If you are a landlord or have business premises, it is a legal obligation to have a Gas Safety certificate for those premises.
  • An annual safety check will ensure that your appliances are working efficiently, thus saving you money.
  • By ensuring that your appliances are working well and serviced according to the manufacturer’s instructions, you will save on repair bills.
  • An annual boiler safety check may be an obligation as part of your insurance cover to comply with the warranty on the boiler.

Gas Safety Records

A Gas Safety Record shows that your gas appliances and flues are safe and working correctly.

• Homeowners: In the case of homeowners, the engineer who carries out the gas safety check may provide a certificate, which is your Gas Safety Record, but he is not obliged to do so. Homeowners are not legally bound to have a Gas Safety Record. However, you can ask your engineer to provide documentation to show that he has completed an inspection of your gas appliances and flue and that it is all OK.
• Landlords: Landlords as well as the owners of hotels, B&Bs and hostels must have an annual gas safety check. After a successful inspection, the engineer will provide a Landlord Gas Safety Record showing details of all the tests which he carried out. As a landlord, you must give a copy of the Gas Safety Record to your tenants within 28 days of the gas safety check to comply with the law. If the rental is less than 28 days, the landlord has to display the Gas Safety Record in a prominent place inside the property.

Gas appliances owned by tenants are not the responsibility of landlords, but the landlord must ensure that connecting flues are safe and fit for purpose. Gas pipework is not part of the annual gas appliance safety check, but landlords should ask the gas engineer to check pipework, flues etc. are in good order when he is doing the annual gas safety check. It is not a legal requirement, but landlords should have documentation to show that there has been regular maintenance of all gas appliances, pipes and flues.

Can Plumbers4U Provide A Gas Safety Check And Gas Safety Record?

A registered Gas Safe engineer from Plumbers4U would be delighted to inspect your home or business premises for a Gas Appliance Safety Check or Gas Installation Safety Check as part of your annual gas safety check.

Contact us at [email protected] or phone on 020 3582 0420.