A gas safety certificate, often called a CP12, is the record a Gas Safe registered engineer gives you after checking every gas appliance and flue in a property. If you let the property out in England you must have that check done every 12 months, give your tenants a copy, and keep the records for two years. We carry them out across Telford and the surrounding towns.
What the law asks of a landlord
These are the duties on a landlord in England. They are not our rules and they are not negotiable, which is why we would rather set them out plainly than have you find out when something goes wrong.
| When | What has to happen |
|---|---|
| Every 12 months | Every gas appliance and flue in the property is safety checked by a Gas Safe registered engineer. |
| Within 28 days | A copy of the record goes to the existing tenants. |
| At the start of a tenancy | A copy goes to any new tenant before they move in. |
| For two years | You keep a copy of every record. |
The check covers appliances you own and provide for the tenant to use. An appliance the tenant owns themselves is their own responsibility, though the pipework and the flue serving it are still yours.
What we actually check
A gas safety check is not a service, and the two get confused constantly. The check is about whether the appliance is safe. A service is about whether it is working well and will keep working. Plenty of landlords book the check and assume the boiler has been serviced, and it has not.
- That every appliance is burning correctly, with the gas rate and operating pressure where the manufacturer says they should be.
- That the flue is clearing the products of combustion properly, with a flue flow and spillage test where one applies.
- That there is enough ventilation for each appliance.
- That the safety devices on each appliance do what they are supposed to do.
- That the pipework, the meter and the emergency control are sound, including a tightness test for leaks.
If something fails, we tell you there and then what it is and how serious it is. An appliance can be classed as immediately dangerous or at risk, and in those cases it is turned off with your permission and labelled. That is the engineer protecting you as much as the tenant.
Homeowners can have one too
Nothing stops an owner occupier booking the same check, and it is worth doing if you have just bought a house, if you have inherited a boiler you know nothing about, or if you are selling and want the paperwork in order. There is no legal duty on you, so it is a decision about peace of mind rather than compliance.
Where we do them
Telford and the towns around it, from our base in Telford. We cover Wellington, Oakengates, Dawley, Madeley, Ironbridge, Shifnal, Newport, Much Wenlock, Bridgnorth and Shrewsbury. If you have several properties in different towns we can usually get them done on the same run, which is easier for everyone.