Industry leaders push for upgraded gas safety checks in the private rented sector

Two industry bodies are calling for mandatory gas safety checks in rented properties to be upgraded.

The Heating and Hotwater Industry Council (HHIC) and the Energy and Utilities Alliance (EUA) say gas safety checks should include a full service of appliances and check on the efficiency of heating systems.

Currently, the annual gas safety checks cover checking the gas appliances in a rented property, such as boilers and ovens, but not assessing the efficiency of the heating system.

Like a car MOT

The HHIC says that adding the heating system to the gas safety checks would also help assess how well it warms the home.

HHIC director Stewart Clements said: “Upgrading a simple gas safety check to a full service will offer the landlord the ability to make sure the appliance is working properly and checks to see the likely wear and tear, just like a car MOT does.

“It can identify when an appliance might be coming to the end of its life, giving the landlord time to plan their next purchase.

“Tagging on a heating system check will allow the installer to make sure the system is running as efficiently as possible, keeping bills down for the tenant. Even checking that the flow temperatures on the boiler are lower can yield significant bill savings.”

Save tenants money and landlords can plan for the future

The Energy Secretary, Ed Miliband, has announced all private rented sector properties will need to meet EPC C targets by 2030 and new tenancies to have an EPC rating of C by 2028.

Mike Foster, chief executive of EUA, says that upgrading gas safety checks could help tenants save money.

He said: “There are ambitious plans to improve the EPCs of private rented homes, which is welcome, but with a simple upgrade from a gas safety check to a system and appliance service, tenants could save £100s and landlords can plan for the future with greater certainty.

“We support the call for mandatory annual servicing of all heating appliances – but a good first step is surely to upgrade the annual safety check to something even more meaningful.”