You must not fit a gas boiler if you are a landlord or private individual if you are not a  current gas safe registered installer, this could prove dangerous to you your family and possible tenants and if caught you may face a jail term and a large fine.  The health and safety executive will be strictly  policing  the latest gas safety regulations and will issue prohibition notices to those caught.

To prevent gas boiler fitters from operating illegally

A plumber who has repeatedly operated illegally as a gas fitter has been jailed for twelve months.  Mr Dalton had been jailed back in two thousand and five but ignored the subsequent warnings and continued to operate as a gas boiler fitter on this occasion he failed to comply with fourteen separate points in relation to gas safety laws.  But in two thousand and seven he installed another gas boiler illegally, when the installation was checked it was found to be faulty and could have resulted in carbon monoxide poisoning.

It appears that illegal gas boiler fitters operate with ease because many customers simply don’t check the gas fitters credentials in one survey in Scotland they found over fifty percent of customers did not check to see if a gas boiler installer was gas safe registered.  It is always important to check a gas fitters qualifications because there are tens of thousands of gas fitters operating illegally in the UK.

To contact a genuine gas safe registered engineer go onto the following

website www.gassaferegister.co.uk phone 0800 408 5500.

What will happen to gas boiler fitters who are being prosecuted during the change over from CORGI to the new Gas Safe Register

Any current complaints will be assigned to the new gas safe register but investigations being undertaken prior to the hand over will be completed by CORGI, local authorities, the police or the health and safety executive

What are the safety implications of not using a gas safe registered installer

Fourteen people were killed in 2008 because of carbon monoxide poisoning as a result of poor gas installations or bad maintenance.  This is why it is so important to get a properly qualified gas boiler installer to carry out the maintenance and installation of all gas appliances.

In your are suspicious that an appliance has not been correctly fitted turn it off and consult a properly qualified gas safe registered engineer

Preventative measures against carbon monoxide poisoning

We suggest that you should fit a carbon monoxide detector and test it at least every month.  This is especially important as carbon monoxide has no smell and you cannot see it.

The symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning Pains in the chest, feeling sick, drowsy and feeling unsteady on your feet and headaches.

How does the gas safe register affect landlords

It is a legal obligation (gas safety regulations 1998) for  private and public sector landlords to get any gas appliance tested every year to ensure that it is safe for use by the tenant to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.  The regs also applies to private lodgers, bed sits and holiday lets.  The tests carried out by gas safe registered engineers will pay particular attention to pipe runs, gas appliances and that the flue vents properly. Once these checks are completed the engineer will supply a gas safety certificate to the landlord within 28 days and the landlord will then present this gas safety certificate to the tenant on request.  The safety certificates must be kept for two years!

If a tenant leaves and has left a gas appliance of their own the landlord must also get the  appliance tested by a gas safe registered fitter before he can re let the property to a new tenant

What information will the gas safety certificate contain

• The property address
• The address of the landlord or agent.  A contract between the agent and landlord should stipulate who is responsible for maintenance and gas safety checks
• The date of the inspection of the appliances and there location within the property
• A list of all appliances that are not working properly and any action taken to fix the appliances
• The details of the gas safe registered inspector (post 30 of march 2009) or a corgi registered inspector which should include their name, number and signature
• Confirmation that the inspection meets all 1998 gas safety regulations

How does the new gas safe register body affect my commercial  insurance

Installers need to inform the insurance company that they are now gas safe registered so that their policies can be altered accordingly apart from that the is nothing more the the gas fitter has to do.

How will the new gas safe register be promoted

For consistency gas fitters who are already registered under the old CORGI

scheme will be able to keep their original registration numbers when they

become gas safe registered.

Once registered the gas fitter should receive free stickers for your van

and logos can be downloaded from the internet and printed at your own cost.

Capita will also be promoting the new gas safe register brand at major

shopping locations and they will be placing adverts on television, radio

and in the national press.

Future date for capita promotions

06/06/2009 St Davids Cardiff

13/06/2009 Lakeside Essex

Gas Safe Register Logo

Gas safe register will be the official body for gas installers in the UK from the first of April 2009 and will replace the CORGI brand name.  The new brand name will be owned by the HSE.

This will require all gas installers to be registered or transfer their existing CORGI registration to this body by this date.  You can start  registering from the nineteenth of January.

Periodic checks and test will be carried out by the 120 CoRGI gas inspectors who have been retained by Capita to run the registration scheme

The health and safety executive will be responsible for overseeing the register which will be heavily promoted in the time leading to its launch and during its existence.

This will include among other things getting the gas safe register included on utility bills and a new magazine ‘Registered Gas Engineer’ coming out in April will distribute new logo stickers for your van and the installers number can be displayed below the logo

One of Capitas aims is to provide forty percent awareness with the general public by October 2009

Existing CoRGI installers should receive details from the Gas Safe Register by the 12th of December and can renew their registration from the 15th December.

For any information or queries regarding the gas safe register please email register@GasSafeRegister.co.uk

Cost of  registering

Online registration will cost one hundred and fifty three pounds plus VAT

If you are not registering online it will cost you one hundred and seventy five pounds plus VAT, which is cheaper than the one hundred and seventy nine pounds previously charged by CORGI

Cost for an additional operative fifty two pounds plus VAT

For notification of work under building regulations the charge will be two pounds online and three pounds by phone

Capita has noted that these costs should reduce over time.  Although they have mentioned that they will be recouping the costs of their publicity campaign from future membership fees and we cannot gauge the cost increase as Capita are not going to disclose ho much the consumer campaign will cost

WHATS YOUR OPINION?

Is the brand good?

Will it be as successful as the CoRGI brand?

Are the new fees for the Gas Safe Register reasonable?

What do you think of the logo?

I think the installer number should be integrated into the logo and not just left up to the installer to decide it or not as I think by not putting the number on will encourage illegal installers.  I suspect the public will also catch onto this and that they would prefer to see the number so that they can check up on the business will the gas safe register web site.

The gas safe register logo is brighter than the old logo CoRGI logo and so should take less time to get recognised by the general public.

I think ‘Registered Installer’ should be on the logo and not just the word ‘Register’.

QUOTES.

Ann Robinson, director of public awareness at Gas Safe Register said “This is not like Marathon changing to Snickers, because ours is a campaigning brand. Our aim is to support registered engineers throughout the changeover and beyond. We will make sure your customers know CORGI gas registration is gone and Gas Safe Register is the official stamp for gas safety”.

She added: “Our over-arching message is always use a Gas Safe Register engineer, check their ID every time and do not give rogue traders a chance”.

Peter Eldridge, managing director of Gas Safe Register said “Gas Safe Register must quickly replace CORGI in the minds of gas consumers. It’s a big mountain to climb, but we’re confident the new brand takes us halfway there.”

Andy Stoll, Head of Strategy and Policy for the new Register told Worcester: “Gas Safe Register will be responsible for registration services, consumer education, tackling illegal installers and providing support to registered businesses and engineers.”

“We will spend a considerable amount of effort educating the public about the value of working with registered engineers. The public will get a better understanding of the protection offered by the gas register and the actions they can take to keep themselves and their family safe.

“These activities will be part of our national publicity campaign to raise awareness of the changeover from CoRGI to Gas safe Register. A better informed public will begin to routinely demand the services of registered engineers (squeezing out illegal workers).

“We will reduce unnecessary burden on registered engineers, and will be tenacious in dealing with unsafe installers. We will provide comprehensive technical support, a new gas standards update and technical alerts service plus a new monthly magazine – big on technical content.

“Finally, it is very important to note that there will be no dual-running of old and new registers. The CoRGI register will end on the 31 March 2009 in Great Britain. The new, Gas safe Register will start on 1 April 2009. To continue to carry out gas work legally from 1 April, businesses and engineers must be registered – there will be no period of grace.”