Gas Safe Register

A crackdown on illegal gas work has improved gas safety for the public, new research reveals.

Figures published by the Gas Safe Register shows no fewer than 2,000 cowboy gas fitters across the country have been investigated during the past three years and £500,000 worth of fines paid out by fitters prosecuted for illegal gas work.

The Gas Safe Register was launched in April 2009 and replaced CORGI as the official gas registration body in the UK. All gas engineers must be on the Gas Safe Register and only perform the work they are qualified to carry out. The Register enables members of the public to check what type of work a gas engineer qualified to perform so if you are working illegally, you will be prosecuted.

Since 2009, seven illegal gas fitters have been imprisoned for putting lives in danger – a stark reminded to gas engineers to ensure their gas training is up to date and that they are registered to carry out the work for which they are being paid.

Gas Safe Register has safety checked 120,000 homes in the past three years – a 25% increase since 2009 – while eight in 10 people are now aware of the register and the importance of gas safety. The body estimates there are still some 7,500 cowboy gas fitters operating across the country without the skills and qualifications to do the job safely.

Gas Safe Register’s chief executive, Paul Johnston, said: “ Gas safety is a life or death matter that affects the entire nation. The Register was launched in 2009 to deliver a sharper focus on gas safety and to protect the public from dangerous and illegal work. We have made significant improvements: before we launched in 2009 only seven in 10 people understood gas risks and that a register existed. We have now increased this awareness to eight in 10 people, which amounts to tens of thousands of people across the country.”

As Basildon’s premier gas training specialists, Gas Training and Assessment is pleased that the stringent checks carried out by Gas Safe Register is removing more and more illegal engineers from the industry and bringing a greater degree of safety to the public.

There are excellent training opportunities available for gas engineers who wish to advance their career and specialise in a particular area. The safety of the public must always be the top consideration for any engineer committing to gas work and it’s simply unacceptable that some engineers continue to put lives in danger by performing work they have no skills or formal qualification in. Aside from the danger aspects, it can also be very expensive for a homeowner to have to rectify work which has been carried out by a shoddy, inexperienced engineer.

To find out more about being Gas Safe Registered or about our courses, please call us on 01268 277977