UK LANDLORDS have been urged to make sure they know the latest safety obligations for renting out property, after researchers uncovered “a huge amount of confusion” over their responsibilities.

Landlords, particularly so-called accidental landlords, must be careful not to fall foul of the rules, an industry body has warned.

By law, landlords are obliged to ensure gas appliances are checked annually by a Gas Safe registered engineer and must provide their tenants with a Gas Safety Certificate.

Landlords also need to install a working smoke alarm and, since October 2015, regulations require carbon monoxide alarms in rooms with a solid fuel appliance.

But a new survey suggests there is lack of basic knowledge among landlords.

Some 28 per cent of landlords and tenants surveyed by Gas Tag either didn’t have or did not know if their rental home had a Gas Safety Certificate.

A further 81 per cent were simply not aware that a landlord is responsible for checking all electrical appliances every time a new tenant moves into a property.

“Our findings reveal that there is a huge amount of confusion about what someone’s landlord is responsible for,” said Paul Durose, chief executive of Gas Tag.

“This lack of basic safety knowledge means that thousands of people renting in the UK could be putting their lives at risk.

“The number of accidental landlords has soared in the UK in the last few years and we’re extremely concerned that many don’t even know their legal obligations to their tenants.”