Most online guidance on a landlord gas safety certificate assumes a residential tenancy. If you let shops, offices, workshops, units or mixed-use space in the North East, the position is different, and it is easy to either over-claim or under-estimate your duties. This guide takes you through obtaining a landlord gas safety certificate for a commercial property, from establishing who is responsible to setting up annual renewal. By the end you will have a valid gas safety record, a renewal routine and the paperwork to show tenants and enforcers. Before you start, gather a list of the gas appliances and flues on site, tenant contact details and your access arrangements. All gas work and inspection must be carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
Regulation 36 of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 sets out explicit annual check duties for landlords, but it applies to domestic tenancies. Commercial landlords are not usually caught by regulation 36 as such. Their duties arise through the wider requirements of the same regulations, which cover the safe installation and maintenance of appliances, pipework and flues, and through the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. Where you supply gas or are responsible for appliances and pipework in let premises, you should expect those duties to apply to you. As of 2026, the exact position depends on who controls the equipment and what your lease says, so take advice from a solicitor or the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) if there is any doubt. Our guide to gas safety regulations for commercial properties in the UK sets out the wider duties in more detail.
On terminology, "landlord gas safety certificate" is the everyday name for a gas safety record. For commercial premises you may also hear "commercial gas safety certificate". CP12 is the widely used landlord form name, though the format can vary between engineers. What matters is that the record is issued by a Gas Safe registered engineer and covers the appliances, flues and pipework you are responsible for.
Read the repair and maintenance clauses in each lease. Establish whether the landlord, the tenant or a managing agent is responsible for the gas installation, and write the answer down for each unit. Where the lease is silent or unclear, take advice before assuming anything. Our overview of landlord commercial property heating obligations is a useful companion read.
A mistake to avoid: assuming a tenant's boiler or catering equipment is automatically the tenant's responsibility. If you installed it, maintain it, or own the pipework serving it, you may still carry duties.
An inspection can only cover what the engineer knows about. A written inventory prevents appliances being missed and gives you something to check the final record against.
For each unit and each shared area, list:
Include communal areas and vacant units. A unit that has been empty for months may still have a live gas supply, and an unused appliance is still part of your installation.
Next, locate the emergency control valve and meter for each unit and note their positions on the inventory. In a multi-tenant building the meters are often in different places, and the engineer, and any tenant in an emergency, will need to find them quickly. Knowing where to isolate the supply is a basic safety measure, not a repair task. A documented commercial gas emergency procedure should record these locations too.
Tip: a single multi-tenant building in Newcastle or on Teesside may contain a mix of landlord-owned and tenant-owned appliances. Mark ownership against every item. This feeds directly into the duty-holder decision from Step 1 and makes any later disagreement easier to settle.
If you cannot identify a pipe, appliance or flue, do not investigate it yourself. Flag it for the engineer.
Only a Gas Safe registered engineer may carry out gas work or inspect gas appliances and flues. Do not attempt checks yourself, and do not ask maintenance staff to do so.
Commercial plant is a separate matter from domestic work. An engineer registered only for domestic appliances is not qualified to inspect large boilers or commercial catering equipment. Before booking, verify the engineer on the Gas Safe Register, and check their ID card:
Then ask practical questions:
The last point is worth settling in advance. If an appliance is disconnected on the day, a tenant may be without heating or hot water, and an engineer who can return quickly shortens that disruption. If you are weighing up providers, our guide to finding a reliable commercial gas engineer near you covers what to look for. Commercial Boiler Solutions is Gas Safe registered and covers commercial properties across the North East and Northumberland, including emergency callouts.
Inspections stall most often on access. Give every tenant written notice and agree a date and time that suits them as well as you. On multi-occupancy sites in Sunderland, Middlesbrough or elsewhere, coordinate so the engineer can reach every unit, plant room and roof in a single visit rather than returning for missed areas.
Before the visit, check that:
Have previous gas safety records, manufacturer manuals and service histories to hand. They help the engineer understand the installation, and they show whether earlier advisories were ever dealt with. A well-kept commercial boiler maintenance log makes this much easier.
Keep dated records of every attempt: letters, emails, call notes and any replies. Offer alternative times in writing. If the matter is ever questioned by an enforcing authority, a documented and reasonable effort to arrange access carries real weight. Review the lease for access and entry clauses, and take legal advice before considering any further step.
This is an overview of what takes place, not a procedure to follow. Only a Gas Safe registered engineer should do any of it. In broad terms the engineer will look at:
Our commercial gas safety inspection checklist goes through these areas in more depth. Note that a boiler service and a gas safety record are not the same thing. A service maintains the appliance's efficiency and condition. A safety check assesses whether the installation is safe. They can be done in one visit, but you should confirm that the record is being issued.
Engineers classify unsafe situations under the Gas Industry Unsafe Situations Procedure (GIUSP). The categories are usually described as immediately dangerous, at risk and not to current standards. Check the current wording and what each category requires on the Gas Safe Register website, as guidance is updated from time to time.
If an appliance is unsafe, the engineer may disconnect it and label it as unsafe. Do not reconnect, override or use it until a Gas Safe registered engineer has repaired it and confirmed it is safe.
If anyone smells gas, or you suspect a leak, leave the area immediately, do not operate switches or naked flames, and call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999. Do not wait for the next scheduled inspection.
Read the record before filing it. Check that it shows:
If an appliance on your inventory is absent, ask the engineer whether it was inspected, was inaccessible, or was left off in error. A gap in the record is a gap in your evidence.
A record with advisory notes means the engineer has observed something worth monitoring or improving, but the appliance has not failed. A record with failed appliances means a defect needs a documented resolution. Treat both seriously, but know which you have.
For any failure, arrange repairs or component replacement through a Gas Safe registered engineer promptly. If the defect is on a boiler, it may be worth weighing the repair versus replacement decision before committing to costly work. Keep the quote, the work report and the date of completion. Then ask for the record to be updated, or for a confirmation of the fix, so your file shows the defect was closed out rather than only identified. If a tenant is responsible for the equipment, notify them in writing and keep a copy.
A mistake to avoid: filing the record without reading the defects section. A passed headline result can sit alongside unresolved notes, and an unactioned defect is worse than an unknown one because you now have written evidence you knew about it.
Give each tenant a copy of the record for their unit and keep your own. The residential rule requires landlords to keep records for two years, but that rule does not directly govern commercial lets. Confirm the retention period that applies to you with your solicitor or under your lease, and in practice keep records for at least as long as the previous and current inspection cycles. Our guide to commercial gas safety record keeping requirements explains what to keep and for how long.
Gas safety checks are normally carried out annually. Diarise the next inspection at least 12 months ahead, and book early. Demand for engineers in the North East rises as temperatures drop in autumn and winter, and boiler faults and callouts peak with it. An inspection booked in late summer is easier to schedule and gives time to fix any defects before the cold weather arrives.
Consider combining the inspection with annual servicing, or with a maintenance contract, so inspection, servicing and repairs are coordinated rather than handled by separate visits. See what to expect from a commercial boiler annual service, and check commercial boiler servicing frequency and legal requirements to plan your schedule. Our commercial boiler maintenance and gas safety services and regional maintenance contract information explain how this works across Tyneside, Wearside, Teesside and North Yorkshire. Our FAQ page answers common questions about inspections.
If you manage several properties, keep a central register that lists each site, the inspection date, the engineer, open defects and the next due date. Log any appliance changes, additions or removals between inspections so the inventory from Step 2 stays accurate.
Check that every appliance is on the record, that any defects are closed out and that the renewal date is in your diary. If you are missing any of those, resolve it now rather than at the next visit.
If you would like a Gas Safe registered inspection or a maintenance contract for commercial property across the North East and Northumberland, Commercial Boiler Solutions can help. Learn more about our services.