Gas And Electrical Safety Advice For Renting Out Property

As a landlord you have a legal obligation to make sure that the building you let is safe for your tenants to inhabit

. Generally speaking, gas and electrical systems and home equipment present the highest risk of harm. It is essential that you ensure that these systems are safe.

FOR GAS INSTALLATIONS

You should make sure that all fittings and flues are cared for properly and in a safe state. This means that you must have gas installations and appliances serviced every 12 months and you ought to keep a proof of the service.

You should have a gas safety check carried out on all gas appliances and flues yearly. A Gas safety certificate is a legal necessity.

Ideally, check gas installations and appliances directly before the start of any new rental, even if the gas safety certificate is still current. Your managing agent should do this for you.

Only a Gas Safe registered plumber or central heating engineer is experienced to repair or certificate everything attached to the gas system. For instance, dealing with boilers, flues or cookers. I myself live in London so I always look for a company by searching the internet and using the words "electrcian london".

Ensure that you keep a record of each safety check for 2 years. Your Gas Safe engineer will issue this certificate.

Also you must make sure you give a copy of the Gas Safe engineers safety check report and certificate to your tenants.

The statutory regulations are: Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998. These regulations are enforced by the Health and Safety Executive.

FOR ELECTRICAL INSTALLATIONS

While there is no requirement by law to have the fixed wire electrical system checked for safety, it is great practice and often a requirement for a good property management agency, to provide a Periodic Inspection Report. If the system is safe and in good condition it will have Satisfactory Inspection listed on the PIR document. A check every 5 years is generally deemed suitable.

All properties built since June 1992 are bound by building regulations to contain inter-connected, mains operated smoke alarms installed on every level of the property. In older properties this is not a necessity.

Nevertheless, landlords are well recommended to provide at least battery operated smoke alarms as a duty of care. If you fit battery-operated smoke alarms unfortunately, it is the landlords liability to test them regularly and for the batteries to be changed regularly. This makes installing a mains operated smoke alarm look more attractive and cost efficient in the long term.

The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994 and the Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 stipulate that all electrical equipment in tenanted residential properties must be safe. E.g. Kettles, cookers, microwaves, televisions and washing machines. Technically a PAT (Portable Appliance Testing) procedure should be applied. This is a test for each appliance to ensure it is safe. A sticker with the pass date is stuck onto it and a record kept.

For landlords with numerous properties this can be time consuming and expensive. Ideally keep the amount of electrical equipment you supply to the tenant at an complete minimum.

by:Stephen Drummonsy

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