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As an owner or landlord of a commercial property, you have a legal responsibility to obtain a commercial gas safety certificate for every gas appliance and/or gas flue within the building you lease to your tenants. 

This gas safety certificate guide – created for commercial landlords and property owners – outlines the steps to obtaining a gas safety certificate, including how to find registered commercial gas engineers who are qualified to conduct your inspection.

A commercial gas safety certificate is a legal responsibility of any commercial landlord or commercial property owner. 

The certificate, which must be issued before that start of a new lease or following the installation of a new gas appliance, evidences that the gas appliances in your building have been professionally inspected by a qualified engineer and deemed safe for use. 

If you lease commercial property space, even on an ad hoc basis such as a B&B, you are obliged by law to obtain a commercial landlord gas safety certificate if you have gas powered flues or appliances in your building. 

This applies to all commercial property leases of up to seven years in length, and some lifelong tenancies where the lease includes accommodation, such as pub landlords and vicars. 

Some examples of commercial businesses that require an annual gas safety inspection include:

•  Care homes
•  Sports facilities and spas
•  Healthcare practices like doctor’s surgeries and hospitals
•  Nurseries and childcare facilities 
•  Educational environments like schools, colleges and universities 
•  Hospitality settings including B&Bs, hotels and restaurants
•  Churches 

What’s also important to be aware of is that the law around commercial gas safety doesn’t only apply to fixed gas appliances in your building. If your tenant uses any portable gas devices on the premises that you have provided, it is also your responsibility to ensure that these are inspected annually for safety compliance by a qualified commercial gas engineer. 

How often you will need to obtain a commercial gas certificate will depend largely on your circumstances. However, by law, a new gas safety certificate is required in the following instances:

- Prior to a new tenancy agreement commencing

- Whenever a new gas appliance (fixed or portable) is added to your premises

- Every year, in order to service existing gas appliances in your building

- After a gas event, such as the detection of carbon monoxide or a gas leak

If your commercial property is vacant, for example because you are between tenancies, you must obtain a new gas safety certificate prior to the new tenants moving in.

If the property is occupied, you will need to inform your tenant in writing that a gas safety inspection is due and liaise with them to get access to the property for the inspection to take place. 

You can get a gas safety certificate following an inspection of all portable and fixed gas appliances in your commercial property by a commercial gas safe registered engineer. 

He or she will arrange a date with you to visit the property in person to test all of the onsite gas appliances that you own and are responsible for, plus any flues present. 

If every gas appliance meets with compliance standards, then your property will pass and you will be issued with a gas safety certificate that details the date of the inspection, the name of the engineer, and any observations made. 

If any of the gas appliances in the building are owned and provided solely by the tenant, it is their responsibility to get these appliances tested. However, you may wish to offer to cover these in your inspection or pay a contribution towards the testing costs, at your discretion. 

You should also ensure that a responsibility for the tenant to conduct annual gas safety inspections on any gas appliances they bring into the building is written into their tenancy agreement. 

At HeatComp, we provide non-domestic gas safety inspections for all types of commercial business. 

Be it a school, church, or a gym, our qualified gas safe engineers can arrange a site visit that causes minimal disruption to your tenants and issue you with a warranty and a lifecycle servicing certificate that includes a preventative maintenance plan. 

Whether you’re about to lease out your commercial space to a new tenant or you’ve had a new gas appliance installed that requires safety testing, we can ensure you comply with all your legal gas safety obligations as a commercial landlord or property owner. 

Your Commercial Gas Safety Certificate

To discuss the Commercial Gas Safety for your building or property, contact the team here.