UK landlords urged to check gas safety
Public liability
13th November 2008
Landlords in the UK have been urged to check the safety of gas appliances in their properties if they want to escape costly liability claims.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) issued the warning after a landlord was prosecuted for failing to rectify dangerous defects in her property.
Sajida Kausar Ali was told to pay £4,000 in costs after failing to carry out gas safety checks in accordance with an improvement notice.
The landlord was also charged with failing to maintain gas appliances and remove them from rooms intended for sleeping, reports Building.
Routine checks of the property discovered ten defects, three of which were "immediately dangerous", while a further three were "at risk".
HSE inspector Stephen Manley said that each year, "people die needlessly due to a lack of effective maintenance of gas appliances".
The HSE reminds landlords that, by law, they should have gas appliances checked annually by an installer registered with the Council of Registered Gas Installers.
