Are you unsure of the legal gas safety requirements for UK landlords?
As a landlord or buy-to-let investor, it’s oh-so important that you become familiar with your gas safety responsibilities and legal obligations when it comes to your tenants.
As an experienced heating engineer, I’ve previously spent many hours on the phone explaining to would-be landlords what their legal obligations are, and telling them to pass their property over to an agent if they’re in any doubt about these.
That’s why I’m writing this blog post today; to get that information out there, as I find most landlords want to do the right thing but simply don’t have the relevant information or knowledge.
Sound like you? Then you’ve come to the right place.
1. Ensure all gas appliances are safe
As a landlord, you are responsible for ensuring that your tenants are provided with safe accommodation. The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 were put in place to cover landlords’ obligations and ensure gas appliances, fittings and flues provided for tenants are safe at all times.
2. Appliances in communal areas
This can be a bit of a grey area for some, but nevertheless, any gas appliances, flues and fittings in communal areas that are also used by your tenants are included under the above 1998 regulations, and you are responsible for checking that these are safe to use.
3. Annual safety checks
As you probably already know, as the landlord you are responsible for maintaining and repairing flues, appliances and pipework provided for your tenants’ use by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
An gas safety check should be carried out within 12 months of the installation of a new appliance or flue, and this should then continue to be be carried out on an annual basis.
You must keep a record of the safety check (landlord’s gas safety CP12 certificate) for a minimum of two years and issue a copy to each existing tenant within 28 days of the check being completed. Copies should also be issued to any new tenants before they move in.
4. CO detectors
In this day and age, everyone’s aware of the silent killer that is carbon monoxide, and Scotland’s safety regulations are getting increasingly more stringent when it comes to landlord’s responsibilities regarding this matter.
Scotland introduced new regulations on October 1st 2013 which require the installation of at least one CO alarm in every space containing a fixed combustion appliance (excluding appliances used solely for cooking) and where a flue passes through high-risk accommodation, such as a bedroom or main living room.
As of 1st December 2015, even newer regulations were introduced in Scotland in regards to the provision of long-life carbon monoxide detectors in privately rented housing.
5. Ensure responsibilities are clear
This can be a bit of a confusing one, but if a letting or managing agent is hired to help you meet your legal obligations, it should be clearly stated in the relevant contract who is to make the arrangements for annual safety and maintenance checks.
It is strongly advised by HSE that you request any copies of the maintenance information and annual checks from the letting or management agency to ensure that this maintenance has been carried out to the best of your knowledge, as this will also help you fulfill any other legal responsibilities in regards to tenants.
6. The ‘who owns what’ grey area
Yep, we’ve approached the section where things start to get a little unclear for many of my clients, so let me explain this in the best way I can. Any gas appliance that is owned by you and provided for your tenants’ use falls under your legal responsibilities.
However, if a tenant has their own gas appliance that you have NOT provided for them, then your responsibility includes parts of the associated installation and pipework, but NOT the actual appliance itself. So, it’s actually their responsibility to ensure the relevant safety checks are made in the years following.
7. The longer lease rule
If your tenants’ lease is for longer than seven years, or is for life, as the landlord you won’t be responsible for annual gas safety checks and maintenance. However, if there’s an implied tenancy arrangement, such as accommodation provided as part of a job (e.g. publican or vicar), you should continue to carry out these checks.
8. The technical definition of a landlord
I know the above is a lot of information to take in, and especially since many people think it’s no big deal – for example, just renting out their grandmother’s home – I’ve decided to include the legal definition of a landlord so that there are no misunderstandings.
Via the official HSE website:
“In relation to domestic gas under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 (GS(IU)R 98), a landlord is anyone who rents out a property that they own or isunder a lease that is shorter than 7 years or under a licence . Regardless of whether you are a landlord under GS(IU)R 98 you may be considered a landlord under other related legislation.
Landlords’ duties apply to a wide range of accommodation, occupied under a lease or licence, which includes, but not exclusively:
- Residential premises provided for rent by local authorities, housing associations, private sector landlords, housing co-operatives, hostels
- Rooms let in bed-sit accommodation, private households, bed and breakfast accommodation and hotels
- Rented holiday accommodation such as chalets, cottages, flats, caravans and narrow boats on inland waterways.”
And finally, always remember to always stay on the right side of the law, and if you’re in any doubt, do your research or seek expert advice on how to proceed. I cannot stress enough how important this is.
Conclusion
I hope you’ve found this blog post useful, and I know there’s a lot of information to take in. However, looking at resources like this one is one of the best ways you can stay informed of your legal responsibilities, as well as the latest updates in safety regulations for landlords.
If you have any specific questions about this topic, feel free to leave a comment below and I’ll try to answer as helpfully as possible!
