A judgment was recently passed down in Barakzai v Fenech at Brentford County Court, which concerned whether a Section 21 notice is valid where gas safety certificates which have been served, are not signed by the gas engineer.

The facts

The tenancy began in 2014 and subsequent tenancies had been issued. The landlords had previously issued an unsuccessful Section 21 claim for possession, so had thereafter served the prescribed documents and a fresh Section 21 notice and brought possession proceedings.

The gas safety certificates for the duration of the tenancy contained an allocated space for the gas engineers signature, but none of the certificates were actually signed. All certificates contained the engineers name printed and registration number.

The issue

The issue was whether Regulation 36(3)(viii) was complied with, which requires gas safety certificates to contain the name and signature of the individual carrying out the check.

The tenants argued that the gas safety certificates had not been signed and the landlords argued that the printed name of the engineer was also a signature.

The decision

The Judge decided that the purpose of a signature under Regulation 36(3)(viii) is not just to identify a gas engineer, but for the engineer to authenticate the record and its accuracy. The printed name of the gas engineers could not amount to a signature, so the certificates were not signed. The Judge held that gas safety certificates require a name and a signature. The printed name is for the purpose of identifying the engineer and a signature is for the purpose of attesting accuracy.

Consequently, the landlords had failed to comply with the Regulation and therefore the prescribed requirement under Section 21A of the Housing Act 1998. The Section 21 notice was invalid and the claim was dismissed.

Comments

The Court did comment that Claimants could remedy any such situation by locating the gas engineers to provide their signatures on the certificates. However, this is likely impracticable if tenancy’s and gas safety certificates cover a long period of time.

Despite this decision not being binding, whilst Section 21 notices continue to be in force, it is best practice to follow this guidance from the Court.

Landlords and their agents should check that their certificates are compliant with the regulations before serving a Section 21 notice.

If you require assistance with residential possession, please contact a member of our Residential Possession team.

Please note that the above does not constitute legal advice.