Unsafe gas appliances ‘in one in six homes’

Over half of the engineers taking part in the survey said they had found a dangerous boiler, cooker or fire that needed turning off immediately.

The vast majority of cases were blamed on people failing to get gas appliances regularly serviced.

Based on the figures, Gas Safe Register, the official gas registration body for the UK, estimates 5,800 homes in the region have avoided a “deadly” gas incident in the past year.

Results of more than 14,500 inspections in the last four years reveal that Sheffield was the most unsafe city in the region with one in five homes unsafe, narrowly followed by Bradford.

In Leeds one in six homes was considered unsafe, York has one in 10 and Hull has one in 13.

In addition in the last year, the region’s distribution network, Northern Gas Networks, found 4,200 unsafe appliances following emergency callouts.

Michael Boaler, a Gas Safe registered engineer from Sheffield, said: “It’s scary to see how many people are in danger and don’t even realise it.”

Last year, Gas Safe Register launched an interactive gas map – www.StayGasSafe.co.uk – telling people how safe or unsafe their area is. People can also sign up to a free gas safety check reminder service which will alert them when their gas appliances need checking.

Chief executive Russell Kramer said: “Over the past three years there’s been 31 deaths and over 1,000 injuries that have resulted from gas related incidents. However, listening to our engineers tell us about the situations they face on a daily basis and hearing just how many life-threatening incidents they prevent, it’s surprising there haven’t been more.”