Heat — the gas side
The certificate, once a year
If you let a property with gas in it, the law requires every gas appliance and every flue to be checked every twelve months by a registered engineer, and the record given to the tenant.
What it covers
Every gas appliance in the property that belongs to the landlord, and the flues serving them. In practice that is usually the boiler and a hob or a cooker, sometimes a gas fire. A tenant's own appliance is not the landlord's to certify, but the pipework and the flue serving it still are.
What gets checked
- That each appliance is burning correctly and at the right gas rate
- That the flue is clearing the products of combustion properly
- That ventilation to the appliance is adequate and not blocked up
- That the safety devices operate as they should
- A tightness test on the installation and a look at the pipework
Why it matters
This is a legal duty on the landlord, not an optional service. The check must be carried out by an engineer on the Gas Safe Register, the record must be given to existing tenants within 28 days and to a new tenant at the start of the tenancy, and copies must be kept for two years. A property let without a current record is also very difficult ground to stand on where a Section 21 notice is concerned.
How it is arranged
Tenanted properties are easier booked directly with the tenant, at a time that suits them, with the landlord or the agent copied in and the certificate sent on the same day. Blocks and portfolios can be run through together on one visit.
Ring it, or write it down
Say what it is doing and roughly where you are. That is usually enough to know whether it is an hour or a morning.