What responsibilities do Landlords have for the safety of their tenants?

When you rent out your property to tenants as a landlord you have a responsibility to ensure that any gas appliances supplied as part of the tenancy are safe for them to use. This also applies to letting a room in your home to a lodger.,

Under Health and Safety Executive regulations, The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, landlords must make sure gas appliances, and also fittings, pipework and flues are safe. 

The regulations cover rental:

1. by local authorities, housing associations, private sector landlords, housing co-operatives, hostels 
2. rooms let in bed-sit accommodation, private households, bed and breakfast accommodation and hotels 
3. rented holiday accommodation such as chalets, cottages, flats, caravans and narrow boats on inland waterways. 

As a landlord you must ensure that an annual gas safety check is carried out for all existing appliances and that a first annual check is carried out within 12 months of the installation of any new appliance.

Landlords must:

• Organise an annual gas safety check by a Gas Safe-registered engineer
• Provide a copy of the gas safety certificate to tenants within 28 days of the check 

A CP12 certificate is valid for one year and needs to be renewed before it expires. 

The same regulations apply to landlords renting premises to private tenants where the gas supply is via LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas) stored in a tank on site.

The annual checks must be carried out by an approved gas safety engineer, who must supply a certificate on completion and landlords must keep at least two years’ copies of these certificates.

Can I take out boiler cover for my rental property.

Yes, landlord cover plans are available. For example, UKBC offers excellent Care Plans for landlords and letting agents, which include the annual Gas Safety inspection and CP12 certification for all the gas appliances in a rental and include automatic renewal notification well in advance of the expiry date.

What if do not comply with the regulations?

Landlords who don't have a valid gas safety certificate, also known as a CP12 certificate, can face a number of penalties, including: 

• Fines: Landlords can be fined up to £5,000 per item.
• Imprisonment: Landlords can be imprisoned for up to six months. 
• Local council action: The local council can take action, such as issuing prohibition or improvement notices, or even emergency remedial action. 
• Manslaughter charges: If there is a casualty due to a gas-related mishap, the landlord could face manslaughter charges 
• Invalid buildings insurance: The landlord's buildings insurance is likely to be invalid for the time the property is without a gas safety certificate. 
• HSE warning or lawsuit: The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) may issue a warning and may sue the landlord afterwards 

What if my properties are all managed using a lettings agent?

You should make sure that your contract with the agent clearly specifies who is to make the arrangements for maintenance and safety checks and if you leave it to the agent you should require that the work is carried out by a Gas Safe Engineer and that copies of the certificate be supplied to you as well as being kept on the agent’s files.

What about gas appliances owned by the tenant?

You will still have responsibility for checks on the pipework, flues etc related to their appliance and it is good practise to s Send a reminder to the tenant that their appliances should be serviced and checked for safety each year by a Gas Safe engineer, and where possible, offer to include these (at reasonable cost) within gas safety maintenance undertaken on your behalf. 

Make sure you have a working CO alarm in your rental property. 

From 1st of October 2022, it has been law that a CO alarm must be fitted in every habitable room of a rental property containing gas appliances (excluding appliances used for cooking purposes) in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland). Additionally, the landlord is required to carry out checks and tests to ensure that carbon monoxide CO alarms in the rental property are working the day any new tenancy begins.

Before purchasing a CO alarm, always ensure it complies with British Standard EN 50291 and carries a British or European approval mark, such as a Kitemark. Check the manufacturer’s recommendations about how you should fit and test your alarm to ensure that the unit and the batteries are in good condition.

For the definitive guide on your responsibilities as a landlord please visit https://www.gassaferegister.co.uk/gas-safety/renting-a-property/landlord-gas-responsibilities/