Tenant access: What are their rights and your responsibilities?
Very occasionally, you may come across a tenant who won't allow access for the gas safety check
Very occasionally, you may come across a tenant who won’t allow access for the gas safety check. They might feel like it’s an invasion of their privacy or you may be involved in a dispute.
Whatever their reason, either you as the managing landlord or your agent will need to explain this is a government requirement and it’s to help keep them safe.
It’s worth reminding them that carbon monoxide has no smell or taste and they could be putting themselves at serious risk by not allowing the check. It might help to reassure them that they can be in the property and even watch while the engineer carries out their inspection.
If that doesn’t work, you can take the following three steps:
Send a letter – either via email with a ‘read receipt’ or by recorded delivery – scheduling a time for the gas safety check. Point out that this is a legal requirement and ask them to confirm that they will give access to the engineer
If you don’t hear back within a reasonable amount of time, send a second letter emphasising that it’s a legal requirement and asking them to contact you
If they still don’t respond, send a final letter asking them to contact you urgently to arrange a time for the inspection that would be convenient for them
It’s important that you complete all three steps and keep a record of each one, in order to comply with your legal obligations.
Once you can clearly show that you’ve made three documented attempts to complete the gas safety check, if needed, you’ll be in a position to start possession proceedings (under Section 21) or proceedings for a County Court injunction.
What you must not do:
Simply use your own keys to get in
Cut off the gas supply – even in the name of safety
These things are illegal and you could be charged with harassment, so make sure you always follow the guidelines on how to inspect a rented property.
For more guidance on what to do if your tenant won’t allow access for a gas inspection, read our separate guide, ‘How to gain access for a landlord gas inspection’.
The guide explains the steps you need to take, and in most cases these will work and succeed in getting you or your Gas Safe engineer entry to the property.
However, if you think you might have to go down the possession or court injunction route, then call eviction specialists, Landlord Action, on 0333 222 3563 – Monday to Friday, 9am to 5.30pm – or contact them online via the Landlord Action website.
If you don’t get your gas appliances and pipework checked on an annual basis, you could be putting your tenants’ lives at risk. For that reason, the penalties for failing to comply with gas safety regulations are severe.
The standard penalty is a £6,000 fine and/or six months in prison. If you are found to be responsible for the death of a tenant, you could be charged with manslaughter.
In addition:
Your insurance cover may be invalidated
You may be unable to issue a Section 21 notice to evict a tenant if you haven’t given them a copy of the current gas safety certificate
If you have any questions about how gas safety may affect your insurance policy, feel free to contact our team.
Yes, but once I explained why it is necessary they granted access
Yes, and I had to take legal action
No
It’s worth bearing in mind that landlords need to follow all regulations including gas safety, building and fire as outlined in our landlord insurance terms and conditions. If you breach your legal obligations as a landlord, you could in turn invalidate your insurance policy and be left to deal with the claim yourself.
