GAS SAFETY………….. 

I have been asked to pay for another gas service and certificate as the first company that carried out the work refuses to revisit my property or issue a correctly filled in report.  Can I use the incomplete Landlord’s Gas Safety Certificate as suggested by my current letting agent and save the cost of another visit from a different company?

The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 place a mandatory obligation on Landlords to have an annual safety check carried out by a qualified gas engineer on all gas appliances.  The gas engineer must be CORGI (the Council for Registered Gas Installers) registered and supply a signed Landlords Certificate once the work has been completed.  The Landlord and tenants should be given their own copies of the certificate.

The Gas Safety Regulations 1994 can carry both a custodial sentence and a heavy fine to both Landlords and their Agents that ignore its provisions.  This action can also extend to a third party, such as a gas engineer, if negligence can be proven.  A case in Durham, for example, resulted in a fine of £10,000 to the Landlord and £4000 to the gas engineer after a student died of carbon monoxide poisoning.  Another in Ipswich resulted in the gas fitter being jailed for eighteen months and the Landlords sentenced to nine months in prison.  

Apart from the thirty deaths a year estimated by the Health and Safety Commission, there are many more cases of sickness related to faulty gas appliances.  Landlords can be required to pay compensation to tenants if they are found to be responsible for such illness.  The Court of Appeal in February ruled in the case of Sykes v Harry 2001 that the Landlord had breached his duty of care to his tenant after a gas fire had not been serviced.  Consequently the tenant was found unconscious with the gas fire on, subsequently suffering brain damage as a result.  The tenant’s claim that the Landlord had failed “to take such care as is reasonable in the circumstances” to ensure that they were reasonably safe from personal injury was found proven, overthrowing the previous county court decision.  The court reduced the damages by 80% as a result of the contributory negligence of the tenant.   

We are very concerned at your letting agent accepting an invalid certificate, as this runs contrary to your obligations under the Regulations.  Why has the original gas company refused to issue a correct gas certificate and has your letting agent paid the bill?  Is the company and engineer that carried out the work CORGI registered?  If so you can complain to CORGI on two fronts, firstly that the engineer has not issued a valid certificate and secondly that the level of customer service falls below that expected of a CORGI engineer.  CORGI can be contacted on 01256 372300 and they may well instruct one of their inspectors to check the work that has been carried out before any other engineer calls. 

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) have to be involved if the company that carried out the gas service is not CORGI registered, or have a registration that has lapsed.  This is a matter that the HSE take very seriously as public safety issues are involved.  The HSE can be contacted directly on 0141 275 3000, for gas safety advice on 0800 300 363 or visit their website at www.hse.gov.uk. 

Your local Trading Standards Office can also be contacted if you feel that the level of customer care and standard of service is very poor.  Trading Standards will usually act once a number of complaints have been raised, so do not feel shy in complaining.

Finally if you want a  Letting Agency that does not take short cuts, give Key-Lets a call on either 01292 289289, 0141 889 0303 or 01505 682000. .