Top Questions to Ask During Your Gas Safe Inspection

Using gas in homes and commercial buildings is routine. Gas has been a popular source of energy for decades. This popularity is due to its efficiency and economics. Though it is generally considered safe to use gas in domestic and non-domestic properties, it does have some serious risks and threats, such as explosion, fire, and health safety issues.

Many gas accidents are reported every year in the UK. That triggered the idea of formulating various regulations for the safe use of gas. Hence, the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 was enforced. One of the basic requirements of these regulations is an annual gas safety inspection, which is also a pre-requisite for getting the "Gas safety Certificate." This annual gas safety inspection should be conducted by a qualified gas safety engineer registered with the "Gas Safe Register."

What is the Gas Safe Register and its Role in Gas Safety?

The gas safe register is the authority that regulates the use of gas in the UK. They issue licenses to qualified gas safety engineers, who are authorized to conduct gas work in domestic as well as non-domestic properties.  They maintain a complete record of professionally qualified and trained gas safety engineers on their official website. The license issued to them is valid for one year. 

Only these engineers are officially authorized to conduct the important task of annual gas safety inspection for the issuance of gas safety certificates. In collaboration with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the gas safe register is responsible for the safety of people and properties against possible risks of gas.

An interesting survey conducted by Gas Safe Register reflects that around 68000 homes were able to avoid a gas accident due to strict implementation of standards set by the law. This might be a remarkable achievement, but on the other hand, it was also observed that more than 50% of their engineers found one or more faulty gas appliances installed in homes and commercial properties during their annual inspections. That means there is still room for further strengthening the gas safety standards and strict implementation of the prevailing rules to avoid gas accidents.

Hence the role of gas safe register is quite important when it comes to gas safety. To make it happen successfully, gas safety inspection and gas safety certificates can play a vital role.

Gas Safety Regulations

The basic law that regulates the use of gas in homes and commercial premises is known as “Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998,” it was further amended in 2018 under the caption "The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) (Amendment) Regulations 2018.”

The above law and its subsequent amendment have made it compulsory for landlords to obtain gas safety certificates for their properties. This certificate can be issued by a gas safety engineer, who must be registered with the official organization in the UK, referred to as the Gas Safe Register. The engineer will give you the required gas safety certificate after conducting a comprehensive safety check on all the gas appliances installed on your property, including the boilers and flues.

Annual Gas Safety Inspection

Annual gas safety inspection should essentially comprise the following:

1. Visual inspection of gas installations and appliances, including boilers and flues.
2. Checking gas burner pressure.
3. Checking that the gas is burnt perfectly. This is important to avoid the emission of carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide is generated as a result of incomplete combustion.
4. Checking for any leakages.
5. Examine the performance of the ventilation system.
6. Check the working of the safety devices.
7. Check boiler performance, including the pressure vessel.

Top Questions to Ask During Annual Gas Inspection

The process of annual gas safety inspection is a crucial and sensitive matter. The process involves two parties: the landlord or his representative and the gas safety engineer. However, a third party can also be involved in this process and that is the tenant.

The landlord is responsible for getting his property inspected by the gas-safe engineer to ensure the safety of his property and its occupants. During this annual inspection, each party has the right to ask questions. Let's explore the possible questions that each party may ask.

The Landlord or Homeowner

The landlord is the most relevant person in the annual gas safety inspection process, as he is responsible for completing it. He needs to ensure that the gas safety engineer thoroughly and perfectly inspects all the gas appliances and fittings. This is crucial for the safety of his property and his tenants.

He or his representative, therefore, must ensure that everything goes in the right direction and nothing lapses. Before the inspection gets underway, the landlord can do the following two crucial checks:

• He must ask the engineer about his official license issued by the gas safe register. He must physically check this license to make sure it is valid and the engineer's credentials are correctly mentioned.
• The landlord should also ask the tenants whether they would like to be present on the site during the annual gas safety inspection.

During inspection, the following questions might be relevant:

• The landlord can ask the tenant about any specific issue with any of the gas installations and fittings he might have noticed recently.
• He can also check with the tenants to see whether they have installed any gas appliances on their own. This is very important, as these appliances are not the landlord's responsibility. However, the landlord may also include these appliances to ensure the overall safety of the people and property.
• During the annual inspection, the gas safety engineer might declare some of the appliances as "unfit for use.” The landlord would be curious about it. So, he must ask the crucial question: how do you repair it to make it fit for use?
• If the fault is minor, the engineer may get it fixed on the spot, otherwise, he will inform the landlord to get it repaired or replaced, as the case may be.
• After the successful completion of the inspection, the landlord will ask the engineer, when I will get the gas safety certificate.
• If the inspection is unsuccessful, the landlord must enquire about the next steps, such as how I can arrange a re-inspection.

The Gas Safety Engineer

The gas safety engineer, while conducting the annual gas safety inspection may raise the following questions:

• When the last inspection was conducted on the gas appliances and fittings on this property?
• How many gas appliances are installed on this property?
• What type of boiler is installed on your property?
• Are there any gas safety devices and alarms, installed in your property?
• Is there any apparent fault, ever noticed in any of the gas appliances and fittings?
• Is there any apparent gas leakage, ever noticed by you?

The Tenant

A tenant is perhaps the least relevant party in this whole process. There is no legal binding on him when it comes to the annual gas safety inspection. However, the landlord must inform him about the inspection schedule so that he may manage to facilitate the engineer for smooth and uninterrupted gas safety inspection.

The tenant may also ask some useful questions from his perspective:

• How long will it take for the completion of the inspection?
• Whether my physical presence is required on the day of inspection?
• What will be inspected by the engineer?
• He will also inspect the flues and boilers.
• I have installed a couple of gas appliances for my personal use on this property. Are these also included in the gas safety inspection?
• Am I supposed to pay any fee to the gas safety engineer for this inspection, especially for the appliances that I have installed on my own?

Conclusion

A gas safety inspection is a regular and periodic activity that is required by every domestic and non-domestic property. This is a crucial activity, as it is aimed at the safety of people and property. It is also essential to get a gas safety certificate. Primarily, it is the landlord's responsibility to manage annual gas safety inspections on his property. Hence, he must have quite a few questions in mind that he would like to ask from the engineer he hired for this very important task. At the same time, the tenant can also have some questions that he would like to ask from the landlord and the engineer.

So, everyone involved in the annual gas safety inspection, whether the engineer, the landlord, or the tenant, must note these questions before the inspection commences.