Landlord Gas Safety Check: Dates, Records, Tracking

This guide follows GOV.UK and the HSE. It is the position on 25 October 2026, England.

Who needs a gas safety check?

If you let a property with gas appliances, flues or pipework that you provide, the rules apply to you. The tenant's own gas appliance is different: you are responsible for the pipework, not their appliance.

The check covers each appliance and flue. It is not a general boiler service.

Key facts at a glance

Step 1: Book a Gas Safe engineer

Only an engineer on the Gas Safe Register can issue a valid record. Always ask to see their Gas Safe ID.

Step 2: Use the early window

You can have the check done up to two months before it is due and still keep the original deadline, as if it had been done exactly 12 months after the last one.

If you use that flexibility, keep the record until two further checks have been done. You may need to prove you met the timescales.

Step 3: Check the record and act on defects

The record must show, at minimum:

• each appliance and flue checked, and where it is
• the engineer's name, registration number and signature
• the date of the check
• the property address
• your name and address, or your agent's
• any safety defect found and the action taken

If a defect is found, you must act. An unsafe appliance must not be used. HSE calls the record a living document: add notes of any follow-up work.

Step 4: Give the tenant a copy

• Existing tenants: within 28 days of the check.
• New tenants: before they move in. If the current record is still within its 12 months, you can copy it to the new tenant.

You can send it electronically if the tenant is happy with that. You must give a paper copy if they ask.

Step 5: Keep your copy

Keep records for at least two years. You can store them electronically if you can print them and keep them safe.

What if the tenant will not let the engineer in?

You must not use force. The law expects you to show you took all reasonable steps.

HSE suggests you:

1. Leave a notice saying you tried, with your contact details.
2. Write to the tenant explaining the check is a legal requirement and for their own safety, and let them book their own appointment.
3. Try again more than once.
4. Keep a record of every message and visit.

That record is your evidence if anyone asks later.

Track it in Landlord Junction

Upload the certificate to the property in the Compliance centre. The app reads the dates from the file and proposes them. Nothing is filled in or saved until you press "Use these dates" and then "Save certificate".

After that, the daily reminder job emails you before the expiry date. The Command Bridge also shows any missing or expiring certificate. The same upload works for other certificates, not just gas.

Registering your property is the next big job. See Register your rental property: dates, fee and paperwork for the safety paperwork you will need to have ready. And if a tenant reports damp or mould, see Awaab's Law and private landlords.

Special cases from the HSE

• A new appliance: check it within 12 months of installing it. There is a one-off flexibility to realign its date with the other appliances: you can add up to two months once per appliance.
• A record still valid when the tenancy ends: it stays valid for 12 months from the check date. If a new tenancy starts within that time, you can copy the same record to the new tenants.
• Holiday lets: for stays of less than 28 days, display a legible copy of the record in a prominent place.
• Shared and student homes: you can display the record in a prominent place if you tell tenants where it is and how to get their own copy at the start of the tenancy.
• A defect found: the record should be issued as soon as the checks are done. Do not hold it back until the repair is finished.

Checklist: gas safety, per property (copy it)

• [ ] Date of the last check, and the next due date
• [ ] Engineer's name and Gas Safe number
• [ ] Copy given to the tenant, with the date
• [ ] Any defects, and when they were fixed
• [ ] Record saved and backed up
• [ ] Reminder set for the early window

Read the rules from the source: GOV.UK landlord safety responsibilities and HSE gas safety check records.

England only. General information, not legal advice. Checked against GOV.UK and HSE on 25 October 2026.