Landlord fined for gas safety negligence

A private landlord with a rental property in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire has been prosecuted, after failing to maintain gas appliances in his rental property.

Mr Gous Ahmed was found guilty at Llanelli Magistrates Court of breaching Regulation 36 (1) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998. As a result, he was given a fine of more than £15,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,500.

Dangerous

The rental property in Haverfordwest was inspected by British Gas in February 2015. On this inspection, British Gas found the boiler and fire to be ‘immediately dangerous,’ with the tenants in the property at imminent risk of potential harm.

Upon further investigation, the Health and Safety Executive found that Mr Ahmed had not obtained the sufficient Landlord Gas Safety Record for his rental property.

Despite improvement enforcement action carried out by the Health and Safety Executive and a number of letters from various council officers, the landlord still failed to obtain the relevant Gas Safety Record.

After the case, Health and Safety Executive inspector Simon Breen, noted: ‘Mr Ahmed put the residents and other members of the public at risk of harm by failing to maintain gas appliances in the domestic property. Landlords and duty holder must ensure they obtain a Landlord Gas Safety Record and they maintain all gas appliances in accordance with the law.’[1]

Landlords should be sure to download our guide to Gas Safety, available in the guides section of our website.

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/7/landlord-fined-for-gas-safety-breaches