16th
Jan 2017
A domestic heating manufacturer and supplier is urging all landlords to switch to electric heating as it is, according to the company, the ‘sensible’ choice for private landlords. The firm backs up their statement as 'apparent' recent findings claim that one in five private rented 'homes' have a gas appliance that is unsafe and therefore dangerous.
The Gas Safe Register has been running surveys over the last five years throughout the private rented sector homes and says that modern day gas appliances are safe, however its findings states that 21% of rented 'homes' have an unsafe gas appliance of which 59% are gas heaters. The main reason why so many gas heaters are dangerous is due to the lack of regular maintenance which should be carried out every year. The blame falls squarely upon those landlords who are either unaware of this precaution or simply cannot be bothered to carry out the procedure, in spite of putting their tenant's lives at risk.
The product marketing director of the firm Chris Stammers, claims that the findings shows considerable benefits for the two million private landlords of going fully electric in their five million properties.
Stammers said: “From a landlord’s perspective, in many cases, it makes more sense to fit electric heating rather than gas. The capital costs of a new gas system, the annual servicing requirements, the system reliability and longevity – it can be a huge financial burden and of course a legislative nightmare.
“By choosing electric, they can provide their tenants with close control of temperature, fast warm up and cool down times, room by room control and high satisfaction levels too. For the landlord, there is peace of mind as there is no requirement for the annual servicing seen in gas appliances. This is all achieved without incurring disproportionately high heating bills, which many people still mistakenly associate with electric heating.
He concluded: “Today’s electric heating appliances offer greater control, lower running costs and better safety features – not to mention smart grid integration. They have to be the sensible choice for any private landlord.”
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