Gas safety
How to check a gas safety record is genuine
Somebody hands you a gas safety record and you have no way of telling whether it came from a real check. The regulation is exact about what the document must say and silent about how you would know it is genuine. Here is what you can actually verify, and what a verification code does and does not prove.
For UK landlords, agents and gas engineers · Checked against regulation 36 and HSE guidance on 31 August 2026 · About 6 minutes
The law tells you what must be on it
A landlord who lets premises with a gas appliance must have it checked for safety every twelve months, and must have a record of that check. Regulation 36(3)(c) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 sets out nine things the record has to contain.
- The date the check was carried out
- The address of the premises
- The landlord's name and address, or the agent's
- A description and the location of each appliance and flue checked
- Any safety defect identified
- Any remedial action taken
- Confirmation the check examined the matters the regulation requires
- The name and signature of the person who carried out the check
- That person's registration number, or their employer's
Two of those nine are the ones worth your attention: the name of the engineer and their registration number. They are on the record because they are what makes it traceable to a person.
And says nothing about proving it is real
That is why a gas safety record cannot be judged by looking at it. It is a page of text. Every one of the nine required items can be typed by anybody, and a well-made forgery is indistinguishable from the real thing on the page itself.
What you can actually check
The engineer, rather than the paper. HSE guidance is that registered engineers carry an ID card identifying the appliances they are qualified to work on, and that the specific areas of gas work they are competent in are marked on the back of that card. Consumers are encouraged to check the card before work begins.
Before work starts
HSE advises checking the engineer's ID card, and the back of it for competence in the specific type of gas work. Far easier on the day than months later.
On the record
Match the registration number on the document against the card. That number is the link between a piece of paper and a real person.
Against the property
The record describes and locates each appliance checked. An appliance listed that is not there, or one missing that is, is worth asking about whatever else is true.
Where a verification code fits, and where it does not
Some records are issued through software that mints a one-off code and prints it on the document. Entering that code shows that a record with that content was issued through that system, on a date, by a business.
What it does rule out is a document that was altered after it was issued, or invented wholesale by somebody who never had access to the system. That is a real and useful thing to be able to rule out. It is simply not the same as "this is valid".
A record with no code is not a fake
If you are the engineer issuing them
The duties in regulation 36 fall on the landlord, not on you. What you control is whether the record you hand over can be checked at all. A record issued through software that mints a code gives the landlord and their agent something to check that a typed document cannot offer, and gives you a dated record of what you issued and to whom.
Regulation 36(6)(a) gives the landlord 28 days from the date of the check to get a copy to each existing tenant, and regulation 36(6)(b) requires a new tenant to have the last record before they move in. A record you can re-send on request is worth more to a landlord than a duplicate they have to ask you to find.
This page describes what the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 require and what HSE guidance says, read on 31 August 2026. It is not legal advice, and whether a particular duty applies turns on facts a web page cannot see. Read regulation 36 itself, or take advice, before acting on anything here.
Issue gas safety records that can be checked
My Job Goblin issues records with a verification code a landlord or agent can look up, and keeps a dated history of what you sent and to whom.
Frequently asked questions
Does the law say how to check a gas safety record is real?
No. Regulation 36(3)(c) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 lists nine things the record must contain, and regulation 36(6) sets the deadlines for giving copies to tenants. Neither says anything about establishing that a record is authentic. The duty is precise about what goes on the paper and silent about how you would know the paper is real.
What can I check myself?
The engineer. HSE guidance is that registered engineers carry an ID card identifying the appliances they are qualified to work on, and advises checking the back of that card for competence in the specific area of gas work. The record itself must name the engineer and give their registration number, so those are the details to match.
What does a verification code prove?
That a record with that content was issued through this app, on a date, by a business. It does not show that the work was done, that the engineer was registered, or that any legal duty was discharged. Those are separate questions and no code can answer them.
A record has no verification code. Is it fake?
No. Most gas safety records in circulation carry no code at all: a code only exists where the record was issued through software that mints one. A record produced on paper, on another system, or before codes existed is entirely genuine and will not be found. Absence of a code is not evidence of anything.
How long do I have to give a tenant a copy?
Regulation 36(6)(a) gives 28 days from the date of the check to give a copy to each existing tenant. Regulation 36(6)(b) requires a new tenant to be given the last record before they occupy the premises, though for a tenancy of under 28 days the record may be prominently displayed instead.
How long must records be kept?
Regulation 36(3)(c) requires a record to be retained until there have been two further checks of that appliance or flue. Where an appliance or flue has been removed from the premises, the record is kept for two years.