Renting out a home in England brings a set of safety duties that sit alongside the tenancy itself. The three main areas are gas, electricity and alarms. Each has its own check, its own record and its own timescale, and keeping them together makes the yearly round much simpler.
Gas safety
A gas safety check is needed every 12 months. It must be carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer, who tests the appliances and the flue and confirms that they are safe to use. The check covers the gas appliances in the property, such as the boiler, hob and fire, not just the pipework. After the visit you receive a gas safety record.
The record must be given to existing tenants within 28 days of the check. A copy should also be kept for your own files, and new tenants should get a copy when they move in. The engineer will normally leave a record at the property as well as sending one to you.
Electrical safety
The electrical installation in a rented home should be inspected and tested at least every five years. This is a full check of the fixed wiring, sockets, switches and the consumer unit, not a test of the appliances your tenants plug in. It is carried out by a qualified electrician and results in a report on the condition of the installation.
The report should be given to tenants within 28 days of the inspection. If the report identifies work that is needed, keep the record of what was done with it, so the next inspection starts from a clear position.
Alarms
There should be a smoke alarm on every storey of the home that has living accommodation. There should also be a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance, with gas cookers excepted. Alarms need to work, so test them at the start of a tenancy and tell tenants how to test them during the year. Replace batteries or units as the manufacturer advises, and keep a simple note of when each alarm was fitted or tested.
Keeping the records together
A single folder, paper or digital, saves time when a tenant asks a question or a new tenancy starts.
- The current gas safety record, dated within the last 12 months.
- The electrical installation report, dated within the last five years.
- Notes of when the alarms were tested and when they were replaced.
- The date each record was given to the tenant.
- Any repair or follow-up work, with the date it was completed.
Put a note in the diary a month before each check is due, rather than waiting for the date to arrive. Book the visit early, give the tenant notice, and keep the written record in the folder as soon as it comes through. If an appliance or a circuit is found to be unsafe, deal with it before the property is let again and keep the paperwork that shows what was done.
This is general information for England, not legal advice.
