Safe service of Gas Safety Certificates
Section 21 claims, or “No Fault Evictions” as they are often referred to as, are a hot topic in the political world right now, but there is even more scrutiny of these claims at Court, whether it is the Judge, Defendant, or a Duty Advisor taking issue.
Whilst there is talk of Section 21 being abolished, for now, it is still an avenue available to Landlords to recover their properties, albeit the process for doing so has become incredibly complex to comply with. We believe that preparation is better than the cure and getting advice before serving your notice, or starting your possession proceedings is important to avoid lengthy and even more complex litigation.
At Legal for Lettings we deal with hundreds of cases involving Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 (“S.21”) and have a team of experts that specialise in helping Landlord successfully recovering possession of their property.
One of the requirements which must be proven when relying on a notice under S.21, is that the Tenant has been provided with a valid Gas Safety Certificate (“GSC”) for the Property.
We have seen a number of cases recently where the Tenant disputes that they were served with the relevant GSC and upon seeking instructions on the point from our clients, we are informed that the GSC was left at the Property by the gas engineer which performed the check.
It is not uncommon for this to happen. Hard copies of the GSCs are usually completed in triplicate, with a copy being left for the Tenant, a copy being given to the Landlord or their Agent, and a copy being retained by the engineer.
If this is the case, it is the gas engineer which would be required to file a statement or certificate of service, to evidence that the document was left with/ provided to the Tenant. Often this will be possible.
However, given the increased prevalence of electronic documentation it is now common for GSCs to be produced electronically. Where this happens, it seems less likely that the Tenant will have (or could have) been given a physical copy of the GSC by the engineer on the day of completion. It might be possible that the engineer sought the email address of the Tenant and sent them an electronic copy, but it is also likely that they did not and would not – perhaps due to not appreciating the significance of the GSC, or on the understanding that it is the Landlord’s obligation to provide the GSC to the Tenant, not the engineer’s.
In any event, it is important that the GSC is provided to the Tenant, and it is crucial that a Landlord is able to prove this has been done.
In more than one instance, it has transpired that the engineer in fact did not leave a copy of the GSC with the Tenant when they completed the check, or that they ‘think’ they did but are unable or unwilling to provide a statement to that effect.
It follows that it is vital, that the Landlord ensures a copy of the GSC has been given to the Tenant. In order to remove any doubt, we recommend that Landlords, or their Managing Agent’s provide a copy of the GSC to the Tenant themselves, retaining proof of such and ensuring that this is done in accordance with any service clauses within the tenancy agreement.
Proceedings for possession can fail, and Section 21 Notices be deemed invalid, due to a misplaced reliance that the GSC had been left by the engineer, and this can be avoided by ensuring that the requirement is met directly by the Landlord or their Agent once the GSC is provided to them by the engineer.
Here at Legal for Lettings, we have experts on hand to help you navigate the technicalities of ever-changing legislation and provide advice to ensure you have the best prospects of successfully recovering possession of your property. If you want to see how we can help, get in touch at [email protected].
