As we celebrate the tenth year of Gas Safety Week, organisations from across the UK are working together to raise awareness of the dangers of poorly maintained gas appliances, which can cause gas leaks, fires, explosions, and carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

Landlords are legally responsible for the safety of their tenants and must make sure maintenance and annual safety checks on gas appliances are carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer.

If you’re a landlord, you are legally obliged to make sure:

• Gas pipework, appliances, and flues provided for tenants are maintained in a safe condition.
• All gas appliances and flues provided for tenants’ use have an annual safety check. Your tenants can report you to the HSE if you don’t provide one, so it’s important to remember. You can set a free email and/or text reminder so you don’t forget, visit StayGasSafe.co.uk.
• A Gas Safety Record is provided to the tenant within 28 days of completing the check or to any new tenant before they move in.
• You keep a copy of the Gas Safety Record until two further checks have taken place.
• Maintenance and annual safety checks are carried out by a qualified Gas Safe registered engineer.
• All gas equipment (including any appliance left by a previous tenant) is safe or otherwise removed before re-letting.

We hear stories from the people behind the superhero masks that manage to spot the signs, educate, and save lives when others choose to ignore the appropriate steps.

John Mickiewicz's story

John Mickiewicz, a gas engineer from Oldham, helped a child understand how he helps families stay ‘gas safe’ at home: “The daughter of an existing customer was learning about carbon monoxide (CO) at school, and came home and asked her parents how they were sure that their gas appliance was safe from leaking CO. They explained that I look after their gas appliance through annual gas safety checks, but she still didn’t fully understand so I visited the home to explain exactly what you look out for and what needs to be done to make sure their home stays gas safe. I also installed two CO alarms and explained how these worked, and what she needed to do if they went off. She has since said that she much safer in her home knowing more about how gas safety works.”

Nick Gurney's story

Nick Gurney, a Swale Heating engineer from Kent, explains how he saved a family from a botched DIY gas job: “I recently went to a flat in Kent where the whole family could have been killed by the botched DIY job on their boiler flue. Condensation was dripping from the flue, and so someone had put mastic (a type of resin) around the joint. Unfortunately, the flue seal itself had perished and that meant carbon monoxide, or CO for short, could have leaked into the flat whenever the boiler was on.”

The ripple effect

As part of Gas Safety Week 2020 and to highlight the importance of gas safety, the Ripple Effect short film tells the story of an ordinary neighbourhood, during an ordinary evening when an extraordinary event happens – a gas explosion rips through a terraced house with devastating consequences. But what caused it? Watch the short film to find out.

Watch the video

Gas Safety Week 2020

Keep up to date with Gas Safe Register’s updates and advice throughout Gas Safety Week by following @GasSafeRegister on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and search #GSW20 and #GasSafetyWeek.

Help spread the message with your customers

This year, Gas Safety Week is addressing a whole range of gas safety matters with a focus on community safety in these difficult times - from advice about how to stay gas safe, to raising awareness of using a registered engineer who is legally qualified, to ensure consumers don’t suffer from the effects of illegal gas work through lack of awareness.

Visit the Gas Safety Week website where you can view and share lots of free advice and information.

Propertymark consumer information

Propertymark aims to protect and guide consumers helping them get to grips with what’s expected regarding landlord safety responsibilities and we have outlined the main safety concerns and legal obligations in our guide:

Landlord Safety Responsibilities Guide

Propertymark resources

To help understand your responsibilities, ARLA Propertymark members can log in to the member's area and refer to our range of fact sheets on:

• Legal Responsibilities for Gas Safety
• Gas Regulations – Danger Do Not Use Notices
• Fitting Carbon Monoxide Detectors
• Installation of Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms

All our fact sheets are an exclusive member benefit.

Fact sheets