Gas Safety Week 2026: Take No Chances With Your Boiler

Gas Safety Week 2026 ran from 14 to 20 September, organised by Gas Safe Register, and this year's theme was Take No Chances. The message behind it is simple: if something about a gas appliance does not feel right, do not ignore it. The week is over, but the advice is exactly what matters in the run up to winter, when boilers and gas fires come back on after months of doing nothing. Here is what Gas Safe Register asked people to do, why it matters in older North East homes, and how to check the person working on your boiler is who they say they are.

What Gas Safety Week asks of you

The campaign's advice to householders, as published by Gas Safe Register and shared by organisations like Age UK, comes down to a short list:

• Book an annual gas safety check with a qualified Gas Safe registered engineer.
• Have gas appliances serviced regularly, in line with the manufacturer's instructions.
• Check your engineer is Gas Safe registered before any work begins.
• Ask to see the engineer's Gas Safe ID card when they arrive.
• Never attempt DIY gas work.
• Fit a carbon monoxide alarm that meets the EN 50291 standard, and test it regularly.
• Know the warning signs on an appliance: lazy yellow or orange flames instead of crisp blue ones, black marks on or around the appliance, and a pilot light that keeps going out.
• If you rent, remember your landlord is legally responsible for arranging an annual gas safety check.

None of that is complicated. Most of it takes a phone call and a glance at a card.

Why illegal gas work is the thing to worry about

The Association of Plumbing and Heating Contractors, writing about this year's campaign, quoted Gas Safe Register's estimate that around 250,000 jobs are carried out on gas appliances each year in the UK by unqualified workers, with around 20% of those needing urgent disconnection when they are found. That is a lot of boilers and fires that have been left in a dangerous state by someone who was not qualified to touch them.

The people doing this work are not always obvious. A handyman who does a bit of everything, a mate of a mate who is cheap, a firm whose van says heating but whose engineer's registration lapsed years ago. The only way to know is to check, which is why the ID card matters.

How to check an engineer in one minute

Every Gas Safe registered engineer carries an ID card with their photo, their registration number, an expiry date and, on the back, the types of work they are qualified to do. Ask to see it. Check the photo matches the person, check the date has not passed, and check the back covers the job in hand, because being registered for boilers does not automatically mean being registered for gas fires or cookers.

You can also check online. Gas Safe Register's website lets you search by business name or registration number and see exactly what an engineer is registered for. Our registration number is 634641, and you are welcome to look us up before we set foot in your house. We would rather you did.

Older homes, gas fires and back boilers

The Take No Chances message lands hardest in the older housing around here. Colliery terraces and postwar council houses across Sunderland, Houghton le Spring, Hetton le Hole and County Durham were built with a gas fire in the living room, and a good number still have a back boiler behind it. Those appliances can be decades old, the flue behind them may be older still, and they are often the ones that have gone longest without a check.

If you have a gas fire, get it serviced before you use it this winter, and look for the warning signs above every time you light it. If there is a back boiler behind it, ask whether it is still safe and still worth keeping. We will give you a straight answer either way, and our gas fire service page explains what a check involves.

Carbon monoxide alarms

An alarm is not a substitute for a service, but it is the thing that wakes you up if a service was missed. Fit one in every room with a gas appliance and near where people sleep, make sure it meets EN 50291, test it with the button, and replace it when the manufacturer says its life is up. If it sounds, get everyone out into fresh air and ring the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999, then do not use the appliance again until a Gas Safe registered engineer has checked it.

Landlords

If you let a property, the annual gas safety check is not optional. Every gas appliance and flue you provide has to be checked each year by a Gas Safe registered engineer and the record given to your tenants. With so much rented and student housing around Durham, Sunderland and Newcastle, we do a lot of these, and our landlord gas safety certificate page explains how we combine the check and the boiler service in one visit.

Booking a check

An annual boiler service with us starts from £80 plus VAT and covers the combustion, flue and safety checks that Gas Safety Week is about. If you are in Sunderland, our gas engineer Sunderland page has the local detail. Wherever you are in our area, ring 0191 540 2051 or book online. Take no chances is good advice. It is also very easy to follow.

Frequently asked questions

When was Gas Safety Week 2026?

14 to 20 September 2026. It is run every year by Gas Safe Register, and the 2026 theme was Take No Chances.

How do I check if an engineer is Gas Safe registered?

Ask to see their Gas Safe ID card and check the photo, the expiry date and the work categories on the back. You can also search the Gas Safe Register website by business name or registration number.

Do I legally need an annual gas safety check as a homeowner?

Homeowners are not legally required to have one, but Gas Safe Register recommends it and manufacturers require an annual service to keep a boiler warranty valid. Landlords are legally required to have every gas appliance checked each year.