Hi, My tenant called last night called to state that the Carbon Monoxidse Detector had triggered in the kitchen and Cadent were called who subsequently turned off the gas supply.
Today I called out a Gas Safety engineer who after extensive testing confirmed no gas leak etc.
The tenant has admitted that they had been cooking when the dectector was triggered. When I visited I saw a huge pot on stove.
My Gas engineer said that the large pot was the most likely cause as it was not allowing sufficient air to circulate. Also they shoudl regularly clean the burner and mop up any spills in the burners.
Based on this I felt that the cost for testing and turning the gas back on should not fall on me.
Its a small kitchen and they let the pot stew away with absolutely no ventilation open.
As the CO detector was triggered I said I would replace it at my cost.
I have no objections paying for everything IF I was at fault. I feel I am a very responsible Landlord and acted super fast.
I wanted your view if I should be liable for the cost and future costs if no fault, no leak etc.
Hi @Colin3 - yes kitchen has an extractor fan but looking at it looks like its never been used - I had a new extractor installed 18 months ago before these tenants moved in.
Why do you have to replace it? CO detectors are usually good for up to 10 years and yours is obviously still good.
Is the CO detector placed according to recommended guidelines? For example:
avoid installing the alarm too close to cooking appliances, as this may result in false alarms. The best practice is to place the alarm at least 3 metres away from the cooker. Keep the detector mounted on the wall at chest height or higher, ensuring it’s well away from areas of high humidity or airflow, such as near windows or extractor fans.
If you were not following these guidelines for detector placement, then the liability would fall on you.
How much are we talking about here anyway? Whatever it is, compared to the price of having a dead tenant, it’s going to be a small price to pay for peace of mind, no?
It’s very simple - you are responsible for ensuring the healthy and safe environment. That includes providing alarms and ensuring they are responded to. It’s your choice not to use a service such as homeserve or landlord insurance that covers the cost of emergency call outs.
They are responsible under tenancy agreement for bringing issues to your attention promptly.
If you provided instructions to tenants which clearly set out how to avoid unnecessary call outs and they ignored those or didnt behave in a “tenant like way” it would be fair to charge them if it happened repeatedly. But I think in this case most people wouldn’t know boiling a pot could cause a co2 alarm alert especially if there is an extractor fan. I would feel this was harsh if they are otherwise good tenants who take good care of the place and pay on time.
Remind them to use the extractor fan when cooking, and even better to part cover the pot with a lid - not only will it reduce steam and the possibility of damp/mould and reduce the chance of an alarm but it will cook quicker and save them energy and ÂŁ.
And tell them they have to keep the burners clean.
Update your property usage instructions and issue them again to the tenants and go through them with the tenants at the next inspection visit.
If you charge them every time there is an issue then what about when there is a small leak they don’t call you for fear of being charged and it causes £hundreds of damage later.
ventiation - I know this as I asked the tenant. They dont like the cold air. I advised to open slightly at least only when cooking for longer period of time.
CO2 Detector - Gas Safety said best to replace. I agree. I had a 10 year battery version but got to be mindful replaceable battery versions available.
CO2 placement - Gas Safety said it was perfectly located.
So with the good advice from fellow Landlords I decided not to charge them on this occassion but will reassure their responsibilities and if repeat they will need to cover teh costs.
