Gas safety

What Aragon does about gas safety

We are committed to visiting all properties every 12 months, irrespective of whether you have a gas supply or not. Our dedicated gas contractors and their service engineers will visit to check your heating system to make sure that it is safe and that any faults are repaired.

This annual service is important for:

• the effective operation of your central heating system and

• for you and your family’s safety and also for the safety of your neighbours.

We are unable to service tenants' appliances, such as cookers or gas fires. However, we will check that the appliance is safe to use; any defects will be reported to you and, where considered necessary, the appliance will be disconnected from the gas supply as a safety precaution.

It is the responsibility of tenants to ensure that a Gas Safe Registered engineer attends to repair any identified defect to their own gas appliance.

Access for the gas safety check and service

We have an excellent system for carrying out gas safety checks on all our properties to ensure your health and safety. The only time we are unable to carry out these safety checks is when a tenant fails to give access to their home.

Please tell us if you will not be at home at the time we say we are coming to carry out the gas safety check, so that we can arrange a more suitable appointment.

Failure to allow access to Aragon’s repair contractor is a breach of your tenancy conditions. We can, if necessary, take legal action to gain access to your property to carry out safety checks. If we have to do this, you will be recharged any costs that we incur, including our administration costs.

Help us to help you stay safe – let us in when we need to check for gas safety.

Service appointments

We can offer our tenants a time for our contractors to call that suits. Appointments are available between 8:30am and 5:00pm Monday to Friday. For tenants that work during these times and cannot make alternative access arrangements for the contractor, we offer a twilight appointment between the hours of 5:00pm and 7:00pm, but only on Tuesday or Thursday evenings.

All of our contractors' engineers carry Gas Safe identification cards. You should not let anyone into your home without asking for identification first. If you are in any doubt, please contact Sun Realm Heating Company on their Freephone telephone number 0800 9020302 as soon as possible and they will be able to verify that the engineer is working on our behalf.

Reporting a repair to central heating and gas appliances

If there is something wrong with your heating in between services, you should report this by telephoning Sun Realm Heating Company on Freephone 0800 9020302 and our gas contractor will attend and repair the fault. You will be offered an appointment time for their engineer to call.

Suspected leakage of gas or carbon monoxide

If you smell gas, or suspect a gas escape or carbon monoxide leakage, you should immediately do the following:

• check if the pilot light on a cooker, gas heater or boiler has gone out and extinguish all naked flames
• turn off the gas lever at the mains, which is next to your gas meter, by pulling the lever down
• open all doors and windows to let in plenty of fresh air
• do not touch switches on any lights or other electrical switches
• do not light any matches, lighters or smoke in the house
• get everyone out of the house and stay out
• if you need to make a call from a mobile phone – go outside the property first
• then call the 24 hour emergency helpline of National Grid (Formally Transco Gas) on Freephone 0800 111 999 to report the problem. They will send out an engineer to your home within the hour and make it safe. They will not carry out repairs.
• you must telephone Sun Realm Heating Company on Freephone 0800 9020302 to report the problem and they will send out their own engineer to rectify the defect causing the problem.

You are at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning if:

• your appliance is poorly installed
• your appliance is not working properly
• your appliance has not been checked for safety or maintained regularly
• you allow a non-Gas Safe Registered engineer to install or maintain your gas appliances
• there is not enough fresh air in the room where open flued appliances are fitted
• your chimney or flue gets blocked up.

Remember: Aragon wants you to be safe in your own home. If you are unsure of whether your gas central heating is safe to use, or if you would like advice on the above, contact the association’s Gas Maintenance Team on 01525 844525.

Advice on the use of ceiling fans in rooms with gas fires

Aragon recommends that electric ceiling fans (also known as paddle fans) should not be fitted in rooms where a gas fire and/or gas boiler is located. The use of the fans may cause fumes from these appliances to remain in the room and this will result in the disconnection of the appliance by the attending gas engineer. If you have one of these ceiling fans already fitted it is likely that it will need to be removed before the gas fire/boiler can be used.

HSE information available on gas safety

Visit the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) website where you can view and download information on gas safety free of charge. This information is also available from the HSE in an audio version.

The HSE Gas Safety Advice Line is 0800 300 363.

Gas Safe Register website

View the Gas Safe Register website, where you are able to find details of Gas Safe Registered businesses and engineers in your area.

The Freephone telephone number for Gas Safe Register is 0800 408 5500.