11-09-2007
Landlords should carry out vital safety tests
Landlords should remember to conduct safety tests on rented property.
According to comments made by West and John, a firm of plumbing and heating engineers, landlords are legally obliged to arrange gas-safety checks each year and incoming tenants should ask to see the resulting certification, reports the Swansea Evening Post.
"It's the best way of ensuring all the appliances are safe and are not leaking lethal carbon monoxide fumes," said Mike West, a representative from the firm. "I have come across landlords who haven't had a gas check for years and they only realised their property needed one when we were called to a problem," he added.
The gas-check requirement has been compulsory since 1996 and non-compliance can result in a fine up to a total of £5,000. Exposure to quantities of carbon monoxide can result in high levels of toxicity within the heart and central nervous system.
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