Landlord safety checks in Aberdeen

Aberdeen landlords need an EICR at least every 5 years, a gas safety check every 12 months where there's gas, and an EPC each time a new tenant moves in, along with PAT testing, a legionella risk assessment and interlinked alarms. Send one enquiry with the checks you need and we'll pass each to a local specialist who covers your postcode.

We're a matching service, not an Aberdeen electrician or gas firm. The specialist you're matched with quotes you directly and does the work.

Where in Aberdeen we match enquiries

Enquiries come from all over the city: Rosemount and the city centre (AB25), the West End and Queen's Cross (AB15), Ferryhill and Torry (AB11), the streets off Union Street and Holburn (AB10), and Old Aberdeen and Seaton near the university (AB24). If your property's in Dyce, Bridge of Don or out towards Westhill, put the postcode in the form and we'll see who covers it.

Aberdeen's housing and what it means for the checks

Granite tenements and flatted villas

Much of Aberdeen's rented stock is in grey granite buildings: tenement flats on a shared stair, and big Victorian houses that were split into flats long ago. In a building that old the wiring may have been altered several times by different people, and you can't judge any of that from the sockets. That's why the EICR matters. It tells you what's actually behind the switches and whether the consumer unit has the RCD protection the Repairing Standard asks for.

In a split villa, check who owns what. If the consumer unit or the gas meter for your flat sits in a shared cupboard or another owner's hall, tell the specialist before they arrive so they're not stuck at the door.

Flats with high ceilings

Interlinked alarms have to go on the ceiling, and in a granite flat with three-metre ceilings that's a ladder job. Each flat needs its own full set: smoke alarms in the living room and every hall and landing, and a heat alarm in the kitchen. If you're putting in mains-wired alarms, a qualified electrician has to fit them, and it's often easiest to have that done on the same visit as the EICR. The fire alarm page has the room-by-room list.

Student and shared lets

Around Old Aberdeen and the University of Aberdeen, and near Robert Gordon University at Garthdee, a lot of flats are let to groups. Three or more unrelated people sharing a kitchen or bathroom as their main home means an HMO licence from the council. Aberdeen is unusual in one respect: planning permission may be needed too, and the council's planning guidance names parts of the city where it's unlikely to be granted because there are already so many HMOs. Shared flats usually come furnished, so PAT testing is worth adding to the list.

Buying a flat that's already let

If you buy a flat with a tenant already in it, don't assume the paperwork came with it. Ask the seller or the agent for the last EICR, gas record and EPC, and if they can't be found, start again. A gap is easier to fix before the tenancy than after.

Gas, legionella and EPCs

Gas: if you supply a gas boiler, fire or hob, you need a gas safety check every 12 months by a Gas Safe registered engineer, with a copy to your tenant within 28 days. A boiler or fire also means a carbon monoxide alarm in that room.

Legionella: the hot and cold water system needs a risk assessment before the first let, reviewed at least every two years. Older granite houses often still have a cold water tank in the loft and a hot water cylinder, which are exactly what the assessment looks at.

EPC: you need an EPC when you let to a new tenant, and you give them the Recommendations Report with it. Read the recommendations, as they set out what would improve the rating. The Scottish Government has proposed a minimum EPC standard for private rented homes, but it isn't law yet; the EPC page explains where that stands.

Registering with Aberdeen City Council

Private landlords letting in Aberdeen must be on the Scottish Landlord Register. The council's information for private landlords explains how to register, add a property and renew. Registration lasts three years from approval, and letting while unregistered is a criminal offence that can lead to a fine of up to £50,000 and a ban on letting of up to five years.

For shared properties, the council's HMO page covers licences, objections and the public register. It also says that in an HMO, a fire safety risk assessment must be carried out by a competent person, and fire safety is enforced by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

Arranging the visits

Granite tenements usually have a controlled entry door, and some older stairs don't have a working buzzer at all. Put a note in the message box about how the specialist gets in, which floor the flat's on, and whether the tenant works offshore rotations or shifts, so the visit is booked around them. If you need several checks, say whether you'd like them on the same day.

The full list

Our landlord certificates checklist puts every check in one table, and the renewal date calculator tells you when each one is next due. Letting further south too? See our pages for Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow.