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Gas/Electrical safety certificate buying/selling home buyer report

Hello again.

Wondering if you could help me again. I know the legal requirement around gas and electrical checks when renting but with selling I know it's different.

My house is for sale and the home buyer report has flagged up that electrical and gas installations should be checked my an 'independent' person. The buyer has emailed me about this.

So, for the sake of a few hundred pounds and to push my sale forward is it a good idea to get these done?

I have found a few companies that charge £40 to £60 pounds for the gas and £120 to £160 for the electrical check.

One company stands out though as they do this kind of work on a daily basis, ie checking gas and electrics for home buyers and seller. They also send one engineer out and so it's one appointment for me and they also have a no pass policy, ie the refund my money if things fail.

My question is what should I look out for when ordering these services and it it common to pay for the checks as a seller?

I am also buying and will get these checks done on that property too, most likely form the same company.

any advice from you guys?
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Comments

  • foxy-stoat
    foxy-stoat Posts: 6,879
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    Its good practice to get your boiler serviced and checked annually - electrics are recommended be checked every 10 years.

    Up to you if you want to do this but as a seller you do not have an obligation to. If you haven't had your boiler checked in the last 12 months then do that for £75 but electrics I would leave and let the buyer pay for that.
  • Susieee
    Susieee Posts: 48
    First Anniversary First Post Combo Breaker
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    I have found a few companies that charge £40 to £60 pounds for the gas and £120 to £160 for the electrical check.

    Is this the going rate for these types of checks and, as a buyer, would I also be able to order these for myself?

    Where are you based and who are the companies you contacted? Can you please PM details if you are in the Midlands?

    Thank you for any replies.
  • plumberpaig
    plumberpaig Posts: 65
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    Very sensible. Always good, for the sake of a few hundred, to help push a sale through and help to alleviate the buyers' concerns.

    I would do everything, within reason, to keep a buyer happy. Another might not come along for a very long while.
  • plumberpaig
    plumberpaig Posts: 65
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    edited 17 August 2018 at 2:30PM
    One company stands out though as they do this kind of work on a daily basis, ie checking gas and electrics for home buyers and seller. They also send one engineer out and so it's one appointment for me and they also have a no pass policy, ie the refund my money if things fail.

    From another very useful post, is this the company you are talking about?

    Personally, I have bought and sold a property on more than 20 occasions now and I would always get a gas and electrical check done.

    There's a company I use. They do both checks in one go for buyers and sellers. They work for estate agents as well.

    Here's what's covered:
    • full boiler safety check including the inside of the boiler
    • full flue gas analysis and readings
    • a check of heating controls for function and reliability
    • a check of the hot water cylinder for function and reliability
    • a full electrical installation condition report
    • a check for any broken sockets
    • a full check of the wiring
    • a full check of the fuse board
    • advice on all the above in regards to safety, condition and future reliability

    Also if you click the link below it is £175 for both checks, not £200 -

    https://www.gassafetycertificate.info/home-buyers-survey-house-survey-buying-house-gas-boiler-electrical-safety-checking-certificates/


    They are recommended a lot on this forum and I think the owner actually posts on here too. Very helpful website too.
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  • Susieee
    Susieee Posts: 48
    First Anniversary First Post Combo Breaker
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    edited 27 August 2018 at 11:38AM
    From another very useful post, is this the company you are talking about?

    Personally, I have bought and sold a property on more than 20 occasions now and I would always get a gas and electrical check done.

    There's a company I use. They do both checks in one go for buyers and sellers. They work for estate agents as well.

    Here's what's covered:
    full boiler safety check including the inside of the boiler
    full flue gas analysis and readings
    a check of heating controls for function and reliability
    a check of the hot water cylinder for function and reliability
    a full electrical installation condition report
    a check for any broken sockets
    a full check of the wiring
    a full check of the fuse board
    advice on all the above in regards to safety, condition and future reliability

    Also if you click the link below it is £175 for both checks, not £200 -

    https://www.gassafetycertificate.info/home-buyers-survey-house-survey-buying-house-gas-boiler-electrical-safety-checking-certificates/


    They are recommended a lot on this forum and I think the owner actually posts on here too. Very helpful website too.

    Yes that is the company I used. I got my gas and electrical certificates done last week from them. You can book online but have to wait a day for the paperwork to come through, you don't get it the same day which was a slight problem for me as I needed it urgently. Can't complain about the price and the service though. (£!75 for both and I also got my EPC renewed at a discount price because it only had a year left and I am letting the property once the purchase goes through)
  • Carrot007
    Carrot007 Posts: 4,534
    First Anniversary Name Dropper First Post
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    Very sensible. Always good, for the sake of a few hundred, to help push a sale through and help to alleviate the buyers' concerns./QUOTE]


    I fail to see how a list of not to current standards (for teh electric report, the gas one should be fine or you will get capped! (not that being fine means anything about tomorrow)) is going to alleviate a twitchy buyer.
  • From another very useful post, is this the company you are talking about?

    Personally, I have bought and sold a property on more than 20 occasions now and I would always get a gas and electrical check done.

    There's a company I use. They do both checks in one go for buyers and sellers. They work for estate agents as well.

    Here's what's covered:
    • full boiler safety check including the inside of the boiler
    • full flue gas analysis and readings
    • a check of heating controls for function and reliability
    • a check of the hot water cylinder for function and reliability
    • a full electrical installation condition report
    • a check for any broken sockets
    • a full check of the wiring
    • a full check of the fuse board
    • advice on all the above in regards to safety, condition and future reliability

    Also if you click the link below it is £175 for both checks, not £200 -




    They are recommended a lot on this forum and I think the owner actually posts on here too. Very helpful website too.
    .
    .
    .

    hello everyone, new hear. does anybody know of good firm who can provide these checks up near me in blackpool?

    iv'e seen a house i want to buy and the electrics look very old and the boiler isnt very new so im going to get these done, the survey advised to do it and the guy doing the survey mentioned the electrics didnt look great and he would definitely check them.
  • macman
    macman Posts: 52,992
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary
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    Get the boiler serviced rather than waste your money on a safety check. If the CU and visible wiring is old, or there are inadequate sockets, this will be perfectly obvious from your own inspection.
    A surveyor is no more qualified to comment on them than you are.
    Neither check is a legal requirement unless the house is to be let, and then only for gas (in England).
    No free lunch, and no free laptop ;)
  • hello everyone, new hear. does anybody know of good firm who can provide these checks up near me in blackpool?

    iv'e seen a house i want to buy and the electrics look very old and the boiler isnt very new so im going to get these done, the survey advised to do it and the guy doing the survey mentioned the electrics didnt look great and he would definitely check them.

    I found this forum through a Google search, unfortunately too late for me, but I would like to take this opportunity to warn others of my experiences of the pitfalls of buying a property, however extreme my circumstances.

    My husband and I bought a property in July of last year. It was a 40 year old property which, on the face of it, looked really well looked after. A few weeks after moving in we noticed a lingering smell of gas. We called an emergnecy number and out came an engineer who condemned our gas meter saying there was a leak. We had to call a gas engineer from our own pocket who worked on an hourly rate. We were told that the was a leak on the installation and both the boiler and gas fire were unsafe and could present 'a risk of danger'.

    Once we got quotes from various gas companies the total bill came to £690. The gas supply to the boiler and cooker was renewed and the gas fire turned off and disconnected. The company said there were at least two gas leaks - one which they found - in the cavity wall because a pipe was missing important sleeving and one other they could not locate and thought it could be buried in the floor and therefore inaccessible. In total we were without heating for 8 days.

    The gas company expressed concerns that the fuse board looked unsafe and pointed out loose wiring, which when tested, was found to be live. A full electrical check was carried out which unearned a number of serious defects. We decided to have the remedial work done and decided to also upgrade our fuseboard to a newer safer one with cut off switches. In total this extra work cost almost £900.

    The whole experience was horrific. Buyer beware please. Be safe.
  • Comms69
    Comms69 Posts: 14,229
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post
    Forumite
    I found this forum through a Google search, unfortunately too late for me, but I would like to take this opportunity to warn others of my experiences of the pitfalls of buying a property, however extreme my circumstances.

    My husband and I bought a property in July of last year. It was a 40 year old property which, on the face of it, looked really well looked after. A few weeks after moving in we noticed a lingering smell of gas. We called an emergnecy number and out came an engineer who condemned our gas meter saying there was a leak. We had to call a gas engineer from our own pocket who worked on an hourly rate. We were told that the was a leak on the installation and both the boiler and gas fire were unsafe and could present 'a risk of danger'.

    Once we got quotes from various gas companies the total bill came to £690. The gas supply to the boiler and cooker was renewed and the gas fire turned off and disconnected. The company said there were at least two gas leaks - one which they found - in the cavity wall because a pipe was missing important sleeving and one other they could not locate and thought it could be buried in the floor and therefore inaccessible. In total we were without heating for 8 days.

    The gas company expressed concerns that the fuse board looked unsafe and pointed out loose wiring, which when tested, was found to be live. A full electrical check was carried out which unearned a number of serious defects. We decided to have the remedial work done and decided to also upgrade our fuseboard to a newer safer one with cut off switches. In total this extra work cost almost £900.

    The whole experience was horrific. Buyer beware please. Be safe.



    This is why you get the checks done (and why owning property is often more expensive than renting)
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