Domestic
Boiler servicing
The annual service most manufacturers ask for, and the one that catches the faults that turn into a January breakdown.
Domestic
Landlord gas safety certificates
The annual CP12 every rented property needs by law, with the record produced on the visit.
If you let a property with gas in it, every appliance and flue you provide has to be checked once a year by a Gas Safe registered engineer, and the record passed to your tenants. We carry out that check on houses and flats across the East Midlands and complete the record on the visit itself.
What the law asks of you
The check has to be carried out within twelve months of the last one, on every gas appliance and flue you supply with the property. Keeping the date running while a place is empty between tenancies saves you catching up in a hurry before the next tenant moves in.
Once the check is done, the record goes to your existing tenants within 28 days, and to any new tenant before they move in. You keep a copy for two years. You can hand it over by email, which also gives you a record of the date it was sent.
The duty sits with you rather than with the tenant. Where an agent manages the property, the written management agreement should say plainly which of you is arranging the check, and it is worth assuming it is you unless it says otherwise.
What happens on the visit
We need the gas on and every appliance reachable, including anything boxed in, behind a washing machine or under a fitted worktop. The check starts at the meter with a tightness test on the installation pipework, then works through the appliances one at a time.
For each one we look at how and where it is installed, check the ventilation, and run it. We take pressure and gas rate readings against the manufacturer's data where the appliance allows it, prove the safety devices, and carry out flue flow and spillage tests. On a room-sealed boiler we take combustion readings as well.
The record is filled in while we are there, so you have it the same day. It lists each appliance, the readings, anything we found, and any appliance we could not test, with the reason why.
If an appliance fails
Faults are classified the way any Gas Safe engineer classifies them: immediately dangerous, at risk, or not to current standards. The first two mean the appliance should not be used, and we will ask your permission to turn it off and label it before we leave. If that permission is refused we are required to report the situation rather than walk away from it, so it is far easier to talk the repair through on the day.
A failure does not stop the record being issued. It is a record of what was found, not a pass certificate. The appliance stays out of use until the fault is put right and re-checked, and your tenants need to be told what has been isolated and why.
Where it is something we can sort on the visit, we will explain what the work involves and what it will cost before we start, agreed with you first, the same as any other job we book in.
Common questions
When should I book it so I do not lose my renewal date?
You can have the check done up to two calendar months before the current record runs out and keep the same anniversary date, so the deadline does not creep earlier every year. Book it any earlier than that and the twelve months start again from the day of the visit. If a record has already lapsed, get it done as soon as you can and the new date runs from the check.
What do I do if my tenant will not let anyone in?
You cannot force entry, but you are expected to be able to show you took reasonable steps. Give notice the way the tenancy agreement sets out, put it in writing rather than only ringing, keep the copies, and offer a choice of dates. We work Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, so give the tenant a slot inside that window, and we can note on our paperwork when we attended and found nobody in.
Is a gas safety check the same as a boiler service?
No. The safety check confirms the appliance is safe to use on the day it is tested. A service is the manufacturer's maintenance work: stripping down, cleaning the burner and heat exchanger, replacing seals where they are worn. They overlap but they are separate jobs, and we can do both on one visit if you want them together.
Does the check cover appliances my tenant brought with them?
It depends who owns what. Your duty covers the appliances and flues you provide, so a cooker the tenant brought in is theirs to look after. The pipework and connection it sits on are still part of your installation, though, so we check those, and if the appliance itself looks unsafe we will tell you both, because it can affect the rest of the installation.
Also from us
Other things we do
Domestic
Boiler repair & maintenance
Fault-finding and repair on gas boilers — no heating, no hot water, pressure loss, lockouts and error codes.
Domestic
Plumbing repairs & leaks
Leaks, dripping taps, tap and valve swaps, blocked wastes and the small jobs nobody else will turn out for.
Need a plumber?
Tell us what has gone wrong, or what you are planning. We will tell you what it takes and what it costs before any work starts.