Yes, and it is a legal duty, not a recommendation. Every gas appliance and flue in a rented property must be checked every 12 months by a Gas Safe registered engineer. You must give the record to existing tenants within 28 days, to new tenants before they move in, and keep copies for two years.
It is formally a Gas Safety Record, though everyone calls it a CP12 after the old form number. It records every gas appliance in the property, whether each one passed, and any defects found.
It is not the same thing as a boiler service. A service is maintenance. The safety check is an inspection. We usually do both in one visit, but they are different jobs and you should know which one you are paying for.
Every 12 months, every gas appliance and flue, checked by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
The record goes to existing tenants within 28 days of the check, and to new tenants before they move in.
Keep copies for two years.
You can carry out the check up to two months before the current one expires without losing the original date, which means there is no reason to leave it to the last minute.
Every gas appliance in the property, not just the boiler. Gas hobs, gas fires, gas ovens. If it burns gas, it is in scope.
It applies to holiday lets and short-term lets too, which catches a lot of people out along the Devon coast. If you let it, it needs a certificate.
It is a criminal offence. It also tends to invalidate landlord insurance, and it will hold up a possession claim, because you cannot serve a valid section 21 notice without having given the tenant a current gas safety record.
In practice that last one is what catches most landlords out. The certificate is not just a safety document, it is part of the paperwork that lets you get your property back.
We carry out landlord gas safety checks across Exeter and Devon, including along the coast where a lot of the properties are holiday lets. We keep track of renewal dates and remind you before they expire, because a lapsed certificate is entirely avoidable and entirely your problem.
See our landlord gas safety certificate page for how to book one.
Every 12 months. You can have the check done up to two months before expiry without losing the original renewal date, so there is no advantage in leaving it late.
The common name for the Gas Safety Record a landlord must obtain annually. It lists every gas appliance in the property, whether each passed, and any defects found. The name comes from the old form number.
Yes. If you let the property out, the duty applies, including short-term and holiday lets. This catches a lot of owners out along the Devon coast.
It is a criminal offence, it can invalidate your landlord insurance, and you cannot serve a valid section 21 notice without having given the tenant a current gas safety record. That last point is what catches most landlords out.
No. The safety check is a legal inspection of every gas appliance. A service is maintenance on the boiler itself. Most landlords want both, and we normally do them in the same visit.
We diagnose the actual fault before quoting to fix it. No jargon, no scare tactics.
