07 December 2023
The Health and Safety Inspectorate (HSI) would like to remind all gas consumers of the steps they can take to ensure they stay safe, including not attempting DIY on gas appliances, not using unregistered engineers, and being aware of the warning signs of unsafe appliances, such as dark or sooty staining around an appliance.
Gas, by its very nature, is highly combustible and presents a serious risk of fire and/ or explosion where leaks occur due to poor workmanship or lack of maintenance. Whether you are worried something is wrong with a gas appliance or are arranging routine maintenance, HSI would like to remind consumers that anyone employed to work on gas fittings and appliances must be competent and have the correct qualifications and experience to conduct such work. All work should be carried out safely and in accordance with the ‘Safe work with gas systems and appliances’ Approved Code of Practice to comply with the Health and Safety at Work (Jersey) Law 1989.
To verify if an engineer is competent, consumers can check their local engineer is registered on the Gas Safe Register website by using their 'Find an Engineer' service simply by inputting their postcode. Alternatively, consumers can call the Freephone helpline on 0800 408 5500.
Consumers can also check that the engineer who has arrived to undertake the work is the engineer they found on the website through the 'Check an Engineer' service on the Gas Safe Register website. By inputting the licence number from the engineers ID card, consumers will be able to see pictures of the registered engineer and details of their qualifications.
If you smell gas, suspect a gas escape or carbon monoxide has been detected, contact Island Energy (IE) on their 24 hour emergency line 01534 755555 and follow the advice on the emergency pages of the IE website.
In addition to the risk from gas leaking, faulty or poorly maintained gas appliances can lead to incomplete combustion of gas creating carbon monoxide, a colourless, odourless, and poisonous gas which can, and does kill affected people every year.
HSI strongly recommends the use of carbon monoxide (CO) alarms as a useful precaution to give advance warning of CO in a property. Before purchasing a CO alarm, always ensure it complies with British Standard EN 50291 and carries a British or European approval mark, such as a Kitemark. CO alarms should always be installed and maintained in line with the manufacturer's instructions.
CO alarms are not a replacement for regular maintenance and safety checks by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
For further information
Safe work with gas systems and appliances (ACoP13)
Carbon monoxide - get in the know
gov.je