The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) enforces landlords' gas safety duties in England, and it is a criminal offence to use a gas appliance, or let someone use one, when you know it is unsafe. A landlord with no valid gas safety record can be investigated by HSE, and any penalty is decided by a court on the facts of the case. Your local council is a separate route: on a tenant's request it can inspect housing conditions and serve enforcement notices. This page explains who does what, and what a missing record means for a tenancy under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 as amended.
Who enforces the gas safety certificate duty on landlords in England?
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is the enforcing authority for landlords' duties under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 as amended in England. HSE can investigate a let property where no current gas safety record exists. It is a criminal offence to use a gas appliance, or allow one to be used, when you know it is unsafe.
Your local council is a second, separate route. On a tenant's request it can inspect housing conditions and serve enforcement notices about hazards in the home. The two routes run in parallel, so a landlord can hear from both.
Neither body sets a fixed sanction in advance. Where a case reaches court, the court decides the outcome on the facts.
What makes a gas safety record valid, and when must the tenant receive a copy?
A valid landlord gas safety record covers every gas appliance and flue in the let property, checked for safety within the last 12 months by a Gas Safe registered engineer. Regulation 36 also sets out what happens to the paperwork afterwards. A flue is the pipe or duct that carries combustion gases out of the building.
- The check is carried out in the 12 months before a tenancy starts, or within 12 months of an appliance being installed.
- The record is kept for two years.
- Existing tenants get a copy within 28 days of the check.
- New tenants get a copy before they move in.
- Lawful occupants can ask to see the record, and the landlord must let them.
- Follow-up repairs are added to the record, which HSE describes as a living document.
An unsafe appliance must not be used until the fault is put right. Any work on the appliance, the flue or the pipework is for a Gas Safe registered engineer, never for you or the tenant. Our guide to landlord gas safety in England walks through the same duties in more detail.
What happens after a tenant reports a landlord with no gas safety certificate?
HSE asks tenants to request the gas safety record from the landlord in writing first. If the landlord does not produce it, the tenant can report the property to HSE using the LGSR1 form, headed "Details of property with no record of a gas safety check". The report gives HSE the address and the history of the request.
HSE then decides whether to investigate. A landlord under investigation has to show that all reasonable steps were taken to meet the duty. Whether those steps were reasonable is judged case by case, and ultimately by a court.
Keeping dated notes, letters and appointment records is what turns "we tried" into evidence. Emails to the tenant and copies of notices left at the property both count.
The tenant will not let the engineer in — what does HSE expect of a landlord?
Forcing entry is never acceptable, even to carry out the annual gas safety check. HSE expects the tenancy agreement to allow access for maintenance and safety checks, and expects the landlord to keep trying by reasonable means. Inspectors look for repeated attempts that are written down.
- Leave a notice at the property with contact details after a missed appointment.
- Write to the tenant explaining the legal duty and that the check is for their own safety.
- Offer to let the tenant arrange the appointment at a time that suits them.
- Record every attempt, with dates.
A refused appointment does not end the duty. It shifts the question to what you did about it, and how well you can show it.
Does a missing gas safety certificate affect possession or the tenancy in England?
Tenancy law in England changed on 1 May 2026, and Section 21 notices can no longer be served for existing or new tenancies. Possession now runs through a specific statutory ground. Applications for a possession order based on notices served before 1 May 2026 were only possible until 31 July 2026, and new assured tenancy forms apply from 1 May 2026.
Under the old rules, a Section 21 notice could be invalid if documents such as the gas safety record were not given to the tenant. That is history rather than current law. Landlords also had to give tenants the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet 2026 by 31 May 2026.
The annual gas safety duty stands on its own. It applies under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 as amended, and HSE and your council enforce it whether or not anyone is trying to end the tenancy. For questions about a specific tenancy or notice, take independent legal advice.
Is a boiler service the same as the landlord's annual gas safety check?
A gas safety check and a boiler service are two different jobs, and only the safety check is the landlord's legal duty. The safety check confirms that the appliance is operating safely. A service goes further and inspects and cleans the components inside the appliance.
A service is not required by the gas safety regulations. It may still be required by the manufacturer's warranty, which matters if the boiler is recent. Many landlords book both at the same visit to save a second appointment.
The annual check is not limited to the boiler either. Every gas appliance the landlord provides is included, so a gas cooker or a gas fire belongs on the record. Our guide on the difference between a gas safety check and a boiler service sets out what each one covers.
Can the gas safety duty be passed to the tenant or paused while the flat is empty?
A landlord cannot transfer the gas safety duty to a tenant through the tenancy agreement. HSE is clear that the duty stays with the landlord, whoever manages the property day to day. A letting agent can arrange the check, but the legal responsibility does not move.
Appliances the tenant bought and owns are the tenant's to maintain. If a tenant leaves an appliance behind and the landlord keeps it, it falls into the annual check from then on. Sorting out who owns what before a new tenancy avoids an argument later.
An empty property between tenancies still needs a valid record before the next tenant moves in. Where there is any suspicion of interference or vandalism, HSE advises a fresh check before handover. See whether an empty property needs a gas safety check for the detail.
How a landlord gets back on track after the gas safety record has lapsed
A lapsed gas safety record is put right by booking the annual check with a Gas Safe registered engineer and giving the tenant a copy. The engineer inspects each gas appliance and flue and issues the record. Where a fault is found, the appliance must not be used until the engineer has dealt with it.
Keep the paperwork tidy from that point. Two years of records, a copy to the tenant within 28 days, and dated notes of any access problems form the evidence trail HSE looks for.
FM Power is Gas Safe registered and works across London and the surrounding counties, seven days a week including evenings and weekends. If you need the annual check arranged for a let property, see our landlord gas safety certificate (CP12) service.
Sources
- Regulation 36, Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998
- HSE — Landlords' responsibility for gas safety
- HSE — Gas safety check records and what to keep
- HSE — Dealing with tenants
- HSE — LGSR1: details of property with no record of a gas safety check
- GOV.UK — Private renting: your landlord's safety responsibilities
- GOV.UK — Giving notice of possession to tenants before 1 May 2026
- Viessmann — Difference between a boiler service and a safety check