What are landlord responsibilities for your rented house boiler

What are landlord responsibilities for your rented house boiler

The majority of landlords look after their tenants by ensuring that appliances are safe. Boiler maintenance falls into this category, and in this article, we examine a landlord’s responsibilities regarding boiler care.

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The right side of the law

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The law states that landlords are responsible for repairing heating and hot water systems, sanitary fittings, gas appliances, wiring, pipes, and ventilation. Landlords are also responsible for servicing gas appliances – their contacts may well include a Gloucester boiler service that is located in Gloucestershire, for example. Landlords are also responsible for a gas safety check every year.

Copies of such checks should be filed and given to tenants at the start of their tenancy. Gas safety checks paperwork should be kept for 2 years.

Servicing

As set out in The Landlord and Tenant Act (1985), boiler servicing is the responsibility of the landlord – check out http://www.hprservicesltd.com/gloucester-boilers/boiler-service-gloucester/ if you’re a landlord in Gloucestershire. The one exception is if the boiler has been damaged by the tenant. Importantly, landlords are required to act swiftly, as no heating or hot water is considered a hazard in law.

Cover for your boiler

Replacing your boiler can be a costly affair. Fortunately, boiler breakdown cover can be incorporated into a specific landlord insurance policy. This is definitely something we would recommend, as with it if you have an issue, there’s a qualified engineer ready to take your call.

Tip top condition

Servicing the boiler in your rental property ticks two boxes, the legal one and also the maintenance once – ensuring that bigger boiler problems won’t creep up on you.

All about education

Make sure that when you have new tenants, you go through the essentials of the heating system with them, including the pressure gauge. That way, you will hopefully keep any problems at bay.

Airflow

Keep your boiler in a ventilated area and make sure the vents are visible, with no items blocking them. Don’t starve your boiler of oxygen, otherwise, you will be storing up trouble for yourself in the future.

Bleed your radiators

Radiators need to be regularly maintained to ensure they remain in tip-top condition – this means they need to be regularly bled. If you are unsure how to do this, then there are lots of online tutorials that can help.

 

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