Landlords should be aware that from 1st April 2009 gas safety checks must be carried out by Gas Engineers who are registered as part of the new GAS SAFE REGISTER. This is the new UK regulatory body that replaces CORGI. Any certificates issued prior to this date are still valid but when renewal is due Landlords must use Gas Engineers with the correct accreditation or they, the Landlord, face prosecution if anything goes wrong.

Electrical safety certificates are not yet mandatory however, the following statutory instruments DO make electrical safety inspections and certificates necessary:

• Landlords and Tenant act 1985 - states the landlord must "keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for the supply of water, gas and electricity. The landlord cannot make the tenant responsible for these repairs"
  
• Housing act 2004 - incorporates the Housing, Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS). See sections 23 (electrical hazards) and 24 (Fire)
  

Any electrical work, not including minor works, that is notifiable under part P of the building regulations must either: Be notified to the building control department of the relevant local authority, in advance of carrying out the work or be carried out by a contractor that is registered with one of the Government-approved scheme providers.

The following schemes are approved by the Government:

• NAPIT Registration Ltd
• ELECSA Ltd
• NICEIC Group Ltd
• BSI
• EC Certification

PATS testing of electrical appliances are a different matter and although the engineers must also hold various qualifications and preferably belong to a reputable company with a proven track record the rules are less stringent.

Nobody wants to employ cowboy builders. If you need a Building Contractor it is always wise to check that the Company or individual are members of Regulatory Bodies or Trade Associations as they have a code of practice and will take disciplinary action if the code is broken.

ALWAYS check references and where possible check out the quality and standards of work by asking to view previously completed jobs and speak to the people who had it done. They will tell you all about how the experience was for them and give you an insight of what to expect.

As a Property Investors Directory we aim to list as many business’ as possible but in this section it would be almost impossible to list every small contractor in existence, so we have decided (for now) to concentrate on listing web sites that help you find a local Tradesman to you, national contractors and UK regulatory bodies in order to provide access to as many QUALIFIED TRADESMEN as possible.

If you know of a National Contractor that we have not featured please email us on info@mypropertypowerteam.co.uk with as much detail as you have and tell us about your experience with them and we will get them on the site.