A campaign run by Gas Safe Register has achieved several positive results, namely a major uptick in the number of households having annual gas safety checks and a rise in opportunities for gas fitters.
The ‘Silent Killer’ campaign, which began in the North West of England between October 2012 and February of last year, followed a discovery that one in five homes in the region had unsafe gas work.
The campaign aimed to motivate a behaviour change and a realisation that unsafe gas work in the home can have devastating effects, leading to injury or even death. The campaign used online and local press, events, outdoor advertising, and even a spoof horror film trailer to encourage people to arrange a gas safety check and sign up for an annual reminder to have one done.
Gas Safe Register managed to achieve a 300 per cent rise in the number of households having annual gas safety checks over just five months of the campaign. This figure is representative of over 53,000 homes.
Gas Safe Register's marketing & communications director, Nick Terry, told H&V News: “The Silent Killer pilot was the first time Gas Safe Register had aimed to persuade people to change their behaviour, rather than simply raise awareness of the dangers of gas work.
"Not only did we see more people keeping themselves safe by having annual checks, there was an increase in work for engineers in the North West. The support from the industry and gas engineers has been overwhelming and I hope together we can continue to encourage people to stay safe by always using registered engineers”, he added.