THE ANSWER, FIRST
For accommodation covered by the landlord gas-safety duties, arrange the required annual check and appropriate maintenance. A boiler service and a landlord safety check are different jobs.
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Who is responsibleYour next stepsBefore spending moneyWhat you can do yourselfPutting it into practiceRecords to keepWhen to reviewCommon questionsOfficial sourcesWho is responsible?
Landlords of relevant rented accommodation with gas appliances or flues within their responsibilities. Commercial premises need a separate assessment.
Maintain relevant gas fittings and flues, arrange the required annual safety check and provide and retain the required gas safety records.
START HERE
Your next three steps
- 1
Identify appliances and flues covered by your landlord duties.
- 2
Use a Gas Safe registered engineer qualified for the relevant work.
- 3
Arrange access, keep records and provide them to tenants as required.
BEFORE YOU PAY
Make sure you’re buying the right job
- List the appliances and flues within your responsibility.
- Check the engineer is registered and qualified for the appliance and fuel.
- Agree whether the price covers a safety check, a service, repairs or a combination.
Watch out: A service and a landlord gas safety check are different tasks. The annual landlord-check rule should not be applied indiscriminately to every commercial building.
Compare the whole cost of two quotesWhat can you do yourself?
Arrange access, locate previous records and check the agreed scope. These organisational tasks do not make you competent to carry out gas work.
When to get competent help
Use a suitably qualified Gas Safe registered engineer. Treat access difficulties as something to manage and document; do not assume an unanswered visit completes the duty.
Keep the booking, visit and record as separate milestones
Before you commission work
Give the engineer the property details, appliance information and previous records available to you. Agree access with the occupant and clarify whether the instruction covers the safety check, servicing or both. Confirm who receives the completed record and who deals with recommendations or access problems.
Follow through on the result
Check that the visit produced the agreed record and note any appliance or area not covered. Follow up findings and incomplete work with the competent engineer. Keep access correspondence with the job history so a later manager can distinguish a completed check from an attempted visit. A booking confirmation should never be filed as the result.
Keep a useful record
Aim for information that helps the next person make a sound decision.
- Appliances and flues covered by the arrangements.
- Safety-check records and relevant maintenance information.
- Access attempts and correspondence where visits cannot be completed.
When to review it
The landlord safety check is annual, subject to the permitted timing rules. Follow appropriate maintenance requirements as well.
Ask a supplier to distinguish a legal deadline, a recommendation based on risk and a condition in your contract or insurance. They are not interchangeable.
Questions to put to a provider
- Are you registered for this appliance and fuel type?
- Does the price include the safety check, servicing or both?
- How will defects be recorded and addressed?
Common questions
Is a service the same as a gas safety check?
No. Confirm the scope of each task and which records will be provided.
Check the official sources
Read the current guidance for the place where you operate. A link is not an endorsement of this website by the regulator.
Source-checked guidance. Specialist editorial sign-off is pending; this is not an assessment of your business. It does not cover every specialist activity or replace competent, case-specific advice.
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