Due to current circumstances regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently operating a limited service and response times are longer than normal.
All of our services and latest information are available on our website using the main navigation or found on our dedicated COVID-19 FAQ page. If you can’t find the information you need, the fastest way to get hold of us is to email register@gassaferegister.co.uk or you can call us on 0800 408 5500.
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation, some engineers have had their qualifications temporarily extended whilst lockdown and social distancing measures are in place. To avoid any confusion, please use the ‘Check A Business’ function to ensure the business and engineer you’re employing is qualified and registered.
Take a look at our most frequently asked questions. If your enquiry is not listed, please use the menu tabs or search bar above for more information about the subject you’re looking for.
General Questions
Gas Safe Register is the official gas registration body for the United Kingdom, Isle of Man and Guernsey. It replaced CORGI registration and by law all gas engineers must be on the Gas Safe Register. Our role is to act as a licensing body.
The register (and all services associated with it) is operated on behalf of the relevant Health and Safety Authority for each region in which it operates – i.e. Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man and Guernsey. As part of this we also investigate reports of illegal and unsafe gas work. When we investigate these cases the information we gather is passed on to the relevant authority which has the power to prosecute.
In addition, we run public awareness campaigns to make the public aware of the risks of unsafe and illegal gas work and highlight dangers such as carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. We also co-ordinate the industry-wide Gas Safety Week campaign. This runs each year and brings together organisations across the UK to raise awareness of the importance of safe and legal gas work.
To help you quickly find a Gas Safe registered business or engineer you can use our online search online search tool. Simply enter your postcode, select whether the work is domestic or commercial, then select the appliance type and you’ll be given a list of qualified and registered engineers in your area.
You can also check if a specific business is registered by searching by their trading name or Gas Safe registration number. To check an engineer, you’ll need their current seven-digit licence number. This can be found on their Gas Safe ID card, which they should be able to show you or tell you over the phone.
If you cannot find a registered engineer in your area who is qualified to carry out the work then please email us on register@gassaferegister.co.uk or call 0800 408 5500 and speak to our team of advisors.
The Gas Safe Register is a list of businesses that are legally permitted to carry out gas work under the trading name that they have registered with. Each business is issued with a registration number when they are entered onto the register.
Within each business there will be one or more gas engineers, each of whom will be issued with their own Gas Safe ID card. This card confirms their registration with us and the work they are qualified to carry out. The licence number on their card allows you to check them online using our ‘check an engineer’ tool. A new licence card is issued annually and the engineer’s licence number will change each time a new card is issued.
In short: no. All Gas Safe registered engineers will have a list of the work they are qualified to carry out on the back of their Gas Safe ID card. The minimum qualification is ‘Pipework’ however gas engineers will usually be qualified for a range of gas work.
It’s important to check they are qualified to do the work you need before you use them.
Engineers will have different qualifications, including:
- Domestic (homes) and commercial (businesses and factories)
- LPG and natural gas
- Different areas of gas work e.g. boilers, cookers, fires etc.
The engineer’s unique licence number, found on the front of their Gas Safe ID card, allows you to check their current qualifications online using our ‘check an engineer’ function.
In the event that you find a Gas Safe registered business or engineer does not carry out work to a standard that you expect you should first contact the business and get them to correct any issues. If the business/engineer does not respond to your request you can raise a concern here. A Gas Safe team member will then contact you to make arrangements for an investigation. You can also call us on 0800 408 5500. Please note we cannot help you with non-gas issues such as contractual or financial disputes, nor can we arbitrate disputes.
We’ll investigate safety concerns which fall within our remit and authority to ensure that any work carried out by a Gas Safe registered business/engineer satisfies our rules of registration and installation standards. Once complete, we’ll send you a written report. To make the process efficient and effective we will ask the business/engineer to attend the investigation inspection (with your consent).
Where work is identified which falls below the expected standards, Gas Safe Register will issue a defect notice to the business/engineer to correct the issue(s) that have been identified within an agreed timescale. You will also be notified of the expectations.
Failure to correct any installation/defects attributable to the business concerned may attract sanctions against the registered business/engineer in accordance with Gas Safe Register Sanctions Policy.
If you suspect someone is working on gas appliances without being Gas Safe registered please gather as much information as you can e.g. names, dates and address of where gas work was done and we will investigate. The more information you have the more effective our investigation can be.
You can report an illegal gas worker online using our form. You can also call our Customer Services team on 0800 408 5500.
Gas Safe Register does inspect gas work to ensure that registered businesses continue to work in accordance with manufacturer’s instructions and industry standards.
Customers can nominate their property for a free gas safety inspection to be undertaken on gas installations in their home if they have had work carried out in the last six months. All you need to do is complete our safety inspection request form or call us on 0800 408 5500.
We cannot inspect every installation that is put forward, but if you are selected for an inspection, you’ll be contacted to arrange a convenient date and time. The business/engineer that completed the work will also be invited to attend.
A gas safety check assesses the basic safety of gas appliances in your home. Its purpose is to ensure everything is working correctly and is safe. A safety check includes, but is not limited to:
- Checking gas appliances are burning correctly with the correct operating pressure
- Checking harmful gases are being removed from the appliance safely to the air outside
- Checking ventilation routes are clear and adequate
- Checking any safety devices are working properly
A service will consist of a full check of a gas appliance and alongside the checks listed above they will:
- Follow the manufacturer’s instructions and carry out equipment specific actions such as:
- The removal of components for cleaning
- The replacement of serviceable parts such as seals/gaskets
- Cleaning of the heat exchanger and any flueways
- Assess the physical condition of the appliance
- Check the state of any air vents and any flues to ensure they have not deteriorated
- Carry out combustion performance tests (where applicable) to confirm the safe and efficient operation of the appliance
- Undertake any necessary remedial work (your engineer will inform you of any additional costs)
- Alert you to any issues found during the service
For more information on this you can visit our ‘Get your appliances checked’ guidance article: https://www.gassaferegister.co.uk/help-and-advice/gas-safety-in-the-home/get-your-appliances-checked/.
Gas Safe Register is not aware of the specific details of how the scheme will operate yet. We are not directly involved in the running or administration of the scheme.
However, it is important that you always use a Gas Safe Registered Engineer, for any gas work in your home, including the installation of gas appliances such as boilers, or any repair or maintenance work. New boilers (and other heat producing gas appliances) will require a buildings regulation certificate on completion of the work and these can only be completed by a Registered Gas Engineer.*
You can check your engineers registration on the Check The Register page.
*This is for England. Similar requirements to the above exist in Isle of Man and Guernsey.
The requirements are different if you’re in Scotland or Northern Ireland. For more information on Scottish regulations, head to the Scottish government website. For Northern Ireland, visit Building Control NI.
Building Regulations Compliance Certification (England & Wales)
Building Regulations requires your engineer to notify the Local Authority within 30 calendar days of the installation of a new gas heat producing appliance e.g. boiler, fire (excluding flueless cookers) and all associated heating/hot water systems. The engineer can do this online or by phone.
You’ll then receive a certificate, which you should keep safe as you may need it if you move home. Find out more information on Building Regulations.
If you have not received your certificate the work may not have been notified.
You can check online to see if your engineer has notified your gas installation. If the work has not been notified you should contact the business/engineer and ask them to notify the work to ensure compliance with the Building Regulations.
Once the work has been notified the certificate will be posted out within 10 working days. If the work has been notified and you have not received your certificate within 10 working days of the notification being made, you can call Customer Services on 0800 408 5500. You can find out more information on Building Regulations here.
If your Building Regulations certificate is damaged or you lose it, we can issue a replacement to you or your solicitor. There is a charge of £6 for supplying the certificate.
You can ask for a duplicate by calling our Customer Services team on 0800 408 5500. Please note that replacement certificates are only available for installations completed after 1 April 2009.
If your installation was undertaken before 1 April 2009 you will need to contact the previous registration body CORGI on 01256 548040. For more information on Buildings Regulations view our page here. Find out more information on Building Regulations.
Solicitors can request a copy of the Building Regulations certificate and the £6 charge applies to these. To request a duplicate certificate please call Customer Services on 0800 408 5500. Find out more information on Building Regulations.
Landlords and Letting Agents
In the UK all landlords must ensure the following in relation to gas safety in properties they rent out:
- Pipework, appliances and flues provided for tenants are maintained in a safe condition.
- appliances and flues are checked for safety by a Gas Safe registered engineer annually.
- All gas appliances are maintained by a Gas Safe registered engineer (this can be accomplished by following the manufacturers recommended maintenance for their appliances/equipment) and all gas equipment (including any appliance left by a previous tenant) is safe or otherwise removed before re-letting.
- A documented record of safety checks, known as a Landlord Gas Safety Record, is made available to the tenant within 28 days of completing the check or to any new tenant before they move in.
- A copy of safety check documents is kept for a specified period.
You can find further details on the responsibilities of landlords on the HSE's guidance to landlords and letting agents.
Yes. Landlords are under a legal obligation to have an annual safety check carried out on all gas appliances and flues, that the landlord owns, in their properties.
It is also a legal requirement to maintain gas appliances, flues/chimneys and pipework in a safe condition. For appliances this normally means servicing the appliance in line with the manufacturers instructions. Both checks and servicing must be carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
All Gas Safe registered engineers have a Gas Safe ID card. This acts as proof of identity, confirms they are currently registered with us and also details the work they are qualified to carry out. Each ID card has a unique licence card number on it. You can use this to verify their details by using our online check an engineer service. Alternatively, you can call us on 0800 408 5500.
Remember, all registered engineers will have a valid ID card and should be happy to show you it for verification. We strongly advise you check their card before allowing them to work on your gas appliances.
Yes. Landlords are legally required to provide tenants with a record of safety checks completed within 28 days of the check being completed and you must keep an auditable copy. The record has to be kept until two further gas safety checks have been completed. In the case that an appliance or flue has been removed from the property you also need to keep the records for two years from the last check.
A ‘Landlord Gas Safety Record’ is a simple way to keep details of gas safety checks. You may see these referred to as a ‘Gas Safety Certificate’ or, as the previous registration body called It, a ‘CP12’ form.
In some situation such as hotels and student accommodation, you can display the legible, gas safety check record in a prominent place. The record should indicate that any tenant can request an individual copy of the record and where they can get it from. Landlords must tell tenants where this notice is and how tenants can obtain an individual copy of the gas safety check record at the beginning of a new tenancy.
The record of a gas safety check must contain the following information:
- A description of and the location of each gas appliance or flue checked
- The name, Gas Safe registration number and signature of the engineer carrying out the checks (an electronic signature is acceptable)
- The date on which the appliance(s) or flue(s) were checked
- The address of the property
- The name and address of the landlord (or letting agent)
- Any gas safety defect identified, and remedial action taken by the engineer
- Confirmation that the safety checks completed complied with the requirements of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 (GB and Isle of Man) and Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 2004 (Northern Ireland). - as appropriate for the geographical location.
- The ‘Landlord gas safety record’ (previously referred to as a gas safety record, certificate or CP12 form). Gas Safe Register does not produce its own gas safety check record form, but many retailers produce these forms.
For more information regarding landlords’ responsibilities surrounding gas safety you can visit our landlords page which contains further information regarding the responsibility of the landlord and the landlord’s gas safety record.
Letting agents do have obligations when it comes to ensuring gas safety. You must:
- Ensure that the management contract between the property owner and your business clearly defines who is responsible for planning and booking maintenance and safety checks on gas equipment, and for keeping associated records.
- Ensure gas appliances and flues are safety checked within the legal timescales required.
- Make sure that appliances, flues and pipework are maintained in a safe condition and if defects are found take appropriate action to fix the problems.
- Keep records that are required by law.
- Make sure that maintenance and safety checks on gas appliances, fittings and flues are only carried out by qualified and registered Gas Safe engineers.
In England and Wales there is no legal requirement for a CO alarm to be fitted in rental properties with a gas appliance. However, we strongly recommend that landlords install audible CO alarms in domestic properties.
The only legal requirement in England and Wales for CO alarms is contained in the Building Regulations and pertains to solid fuel appliances that burn wood and coal etc.
On 1 Oct 2015 the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 came into force. Private rental sector landlords are required to have at least one smoke alarm installed on every floor of their properties and a CO alarm in any room where solid fuel is used. Landlords must ensure the alarms are in working order at the start of each new tenancy.
In Scotland, the Scottish Building Standards have required the installation of a CO alarm whenever a new gas appliance is installed – with the exception of cooking appliances.
In 2014, a change was made to the Housing (Scotland) Act which took effect from the 1st December 2015 forcing private landlords to have a CO detection system installed in all properties they rent out where:
- A fixed combustion appliance (excluding an appliance used solely for cooking) is present in the property.
- A fixed combustion appliance is located in an inter-connected space, for example an integral garage.
- A combustion appliance that has had to be installed in a bathroom (the current guidelines advise they should be located elsewhere if possible). The CO alarm should be sited outside the room as close to the appliance as possible but allowing for the effect humid air might have on the detector when the bathroom door is open. This applies to ALL fuels.
In Northern Ireland CO alarms must be provided when a new gas appliance is fitted. This has been in effect since 31st October 2012 and there is no current information regarding further changes. This requirement is from Technical Document L of the Building Regulations in Northern Ireland which has been amended to cover protection against CO and states:
“Where a combustion appliance is installed in a dwelling, reasonable provision shall be made to detect and give warning of the presence of CO gas at levels harmful to people.”
When purchasing CO alarms for your rental property always make sure it complies with British Standard EN 50291 and carries a British or European approval mark, such as a Kitemark.
Be aware that standards for CO alarms are much more stringent now than a few years ago, so if you have older alarms you should look to replace them. Always follow the manufacturer’s recommendations about how you should fit the alarm for best performance and how regularly to check the batteries.
Flues that remove fumes from room sealed, fan assisted gas boilers such as ones located in a ceiling, behind a wall, or within boxing are considered to be flues in voids.
Since 1st January 2013 these types of flues must have suitably sized inspection hatches installed to allow the entire length of the flue to be inspected by a gas engineer during a safety check.
If a flue is inaccessible or the hatches are not positioned correctly or are too small to allow the entire flue to be inspected, the engineer will classify the appliance as ‘At Risk’ and apply a ‘Danger Do Not Use’ label to the appliance.
