Understanding Gas Safe Warning Notices: What You Need to Know

There would hardly be a household in the UK without gas these days. It has become essential to every home, whether heating, hot water supply or cooking. Gas is generally considered a safe and economical energy source, whether supplied directly to homes through supply pipelines, in cylinders, or in bottled form. But we cannot rate it as a zero-risk energy source; it has some risks involved.

The most common risks associated with gas might be an explosion, fire, or emissions. To mitigate these risks, various rules and regulations exist in almost every part of the world, including the UK. The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, as amended occasionally, is the basic law that governs the safe use of gas in the UK.

Gas Safe Register, an official organization, is responsible for ensuring the implementation of these regulations. Per these regulations, every landlord or homeowner is legally bound to have their properties inspected for gas safety once a year by a qualified and registered gas-safe engineer.

Gas Safe Register and Gas Safety

The gas safe register registers and maintains a complete record of professionally qualified and trained gas safety engineers on its official website. The engineers are registered and licensed to work on gas installations and appliances, and their license is valid for one year.

Only these engineers are officially authorized to conduct the important annual gas safety inspection task to issue gas safety certificates. In collaboration with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the gas safe register is responsible for the safety of people and properties against possible gas risks. An interesting survey conducted by Gas Safe Register reflects that around 68,000 homes could avoid a gas accident due to strict implementation of standards set by the law. On the other hand, it was also observed that more than 50% of their engineers found one or more faulty gas appliances during their annual inspections.

Hence, the role of the gas safe register is quite essential for gas safety. To make it happen successfully, they use a crucial method of issuing warning notices to homes where they find any violation of the rules or detect faulty gas appliances and fittings.

Gas Appliance Warnings - GIUSP

While conducting an annual gas safety check, a gas-safe engineer may come across a vital gas safety situation. In any unsafe gas situation, he will follow the GIUSP protocol. GIUSP stands for "Gas Industry Unsafe Situations Procedure.” The GIUSP involves the following essential steps.

• To find the actual cause of the problem.
• Once detected, they will try to fix it.
• If this is not possible on the spot, the owners will be notified to have the faulty appliances repaired or replaced.
• Meanwhile, they will disconnect the faulty appliances and label them "Do Not Use.”

Categories of Unsafe Gas Appliances

The appliances labelled as "Do Not Use” by the gas safety engineer are generally categorized into the following two types:

1. Immediately Dangerous – ID - As the name suggests, these gas appliances and fittings are considered the most dangerous and carry the potential risk straightaway. Hence, the engineer strictly prohibits using such appliances or fittings, and he will disconnect the gas supply to these appliances until the fault is fixed. If the user cannot disconnect the gas supply, the engineer will report it to the Emergency Service Provider (ESP), who has the legal authority to forcefully disconnect the gas supply to ensure the safety of people and property. ESP may also label the appliance as “Danger Do Not Use.”
2. At Risk – AR – Appliances with one or more faults are generally categorized as AR or "At Risk.” The engineer must turn off such fittings or appliances with the landlord's permission.  As a responsible citizen, you are expected not to use them until the fault is removed. However, there might be a situation where merely turning off such appliances will not avert the risk. In such a situation, the engineer will also issue a warning notice. He should also guide you on how and whom to contact to fix it.

In addition to the above two categories, some appliances may be categorized as "Not to the Current Standard." Although you may continue using such appliances, it is highly recommended that you get them replaced with a new one that complies with the current standards.

Gas Safety Alerts

Safety alerts are provided to the gas safe register by the manufacturers and other stakeholders where a significant fault is detected and is potentially prone to causing severe threats to the users. In any such eventuality, the users must immediately get the problem resolved by qualified and registered engineers or the manufacturers. These alerts or notices are provided to the gas safe register by the HSE. HSE may also notify the users on how to resolve these issues.

Here are some of the notices and alerts officially issued by the Gas Safe Register on the advice of the manufacturers of some of the renowned brands of Gas Appliances:

• Safety Alert # 33: This is about a Morco Fluid Water Heater fault that releases unburnt gas.
• Safety Alert # 32: There is an issue with the Belling Gas Connector Inlet point, especially for those manufactured after 2019. The manufacturers also provide a complete list of such items in this safety alert.
• Safety Alert # 31: The manufacturer has notified us of an issue with some of the SALVUS-branded angled micro-point gas hoses.
• Safety Alert # 30: The manufacturers have notified us about an issue with the gas grills in Belling, Stoves, and New World gas cookers.
• Safety Alert # 28: It is about fitting the wrong injector in the ELDSLÅGA hob.
• Safety Alert # 27: It deals with the wrong injector fitted in the Whirlpool gas hob
• Safety Alert # 13: Potterton gas boilers have developed a rare fault that emits carbon monoxide, which is highly risky.
• Safety Alert # 2: This is a product recall notice issued by Buderus Boiler series 600 and 500 manufacturers.

These are examples of some of the alerts issued by the Gas Safe Register regarding the notification of the manufacturers under various circumstances for the benefit of the users of these products. A complete list of such alerts is available on the Gas Safe Register's official website.

Specific Gas Safety Notices

Apart from the situations discussed above, you may also receive gas safety notices from the relevant local authorities in case an unsafe use of gas is detected at your premises. This might be an unintentional gas leak or any other situation that may pose threats to the individuals residing in adjoining properties. Any such notice, if received, must be attended to instantly to avoid any severe consequences.

Conclusion

Using gas for heating or cooking at home is a standard practice almost everywhere. Under normal circumstances, this should be quite a safe option unless there's any violation of the rules and regulations regarding gas safety.

The relevant authorities, such as the Gas Safe Register in the UK, are responsible for ensuring the safety of people and properties against any possible risks associated with using gas. In case of detection of any fault in the gas fittings and appliances installed in your home, the gas safe register may issue warnings and notices to get the faults removed. Additionally, manufacturers of various gas appliances notify of any fault detected in their products. The gas safe register is used for the benefit of the end users and then issues these alerts.

So, the notices and alerts are meant for your safety, and you need to comply with them.