When the claimant in this case moved into a rented property, a gas-safety certificate was provided confirming the house was safe to live in. However, it didn’t take long for the claimant to start experiencing symptoms associated with gas exposure that inevitably required medical treatment.
Upon investigating the premises, an engineer deemed the house unsafe to live in after confirming there was gas leaking in the property.
A gas leak is incredibly dangerous and the claimant is very lucky not to have suffered more serious injuries. Gas leaks are of course flammable, and ignition could have caused an explosion, destroying the property and killing anyone inside.
Gas leaks can cause symptoms such as:
- Nausea
- Dizziness
- Fatigue
- Chest pain
These can be symptoms of asphyxia when the body is deprived of oxygen. If the claimant spent much more time in that property with the leaking gas, they could easily have suffered damage to the nerves and brain, resulting in a coma and even death.
The important responsibility of landlords and letting agents
Letting agents have an important duty to check the properties they handle and ensue they’re safe for living in. In this case, it’s clear that the claimant’s agents failed to identify the gas leak and repair it before occupancy, exposing the claimant to serious danger.
If you ever wonder why lettings agents charge so much ‘just to be the middleman’ in renting a property, it’s supposed to be because of these kinds of responsibilities. Like a goods seller needing to check their goods are safe for use, lettings agents need to ensure the properties they help rent out are safe to live in. Whether or not they advertise properties accurately or not, basic health and safety is a minimum requirement. When you move in to a rented home, regardless of how much you pay, you expect the premises to be safe, and you should not have to worry about lethal gas leaks and dangerous mould that could lead to toxic mould syndrome.
The tenant came to The Injury Lawyers for help. The lettings agents initially failed to respond to the letter of claim so we made an application to force a response. We’re pleased that we were able to attain a settlement in this case, and it should serve as a warning that this could have been a far more serious incident had the gas caused irreversible damage or death.
