The Gas Safe Register, Britain’s official gas safety authority, has released a report highlighting the dangers for tenants of landlords who do not comply with their gas safety obligations.

Despite the legal regulations regarding gas safety in rental accommodation, many landlords are not fulfilling their obligations.

The Gas Safe Register carried out an inspection of almost 43,000 privately rented properties across the UK and discovered that one in five – 22 per cent – of the homes were unsafe as a result of poorly fitted or faulty gas appliances. These ranged from gas hobs to heaters and ovens. Any one of the appliances could have resulted in a housefire, a gas leak, an explosion or led to carbon monoxide poisoning for the tenants, which can be fatal.

Sixteen per cent of privately owned homes were found to be unsafe by the Gas Safe Register’s research, while 12 per cent of homes rented through a local authority or housing association were found to be so. In total, around 900,000 homes were found to be at risk from a gas appliance.

By law, landlords must ensure gas safety at all of their rented properties and must get pipework and gas appliances checked by a registered engineer each year.

However, Gas Safe Register’s Sarah Hill believes that today’s landlords must do more to ensure the safety of their tenants. “Some landlords don’t take their responsibilities seriously. Signing up for an annual gas safety reminder can help landlords stay on the right side of the law and, most importantly, keep their tenants safe,” she said.

The Gas Safe Register recommends that both landlords and tenants register at www.staygassafe.co.uk, as they will receive an email to alert them to when their gas appliances are due to be checked.