The Renters' Rights Act: what it changes for gas compliance

The Renters' Rights Act 2025 became law in October 2025, and from 1 May 2026 Section 21 no-fault evictions are abolished and all assured tenancies become periodic. Your gas safety duties themselves don't change, they're still set by the 1998 regulations, but the enforcement around them sharpens, with civil penalties of up to £7,000 for a first breach and up to £40,000, or prosecution, for serious or repeated ones.

What's already in force

The Act received Royal Assent in October 2025, and the first phase took effect on 1 May 2026: Section 21 is gone, tenancies are periodic rather than fixed-term assured shorthold, there's an annual cap on rent increases, and rental bidding is banned. Later phases, expected from late 2026, bring a Private Rented Sector Database and a landlord ombudsman.

Your gas duties haven't changed

This is the reassuring part for compliance: the Act doesn't rewrite the gas rules. The annual gas safety check, the tenant's copy, the two-year records, all still come from the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, enforced by the HSE, exactly as before. What changes is the context around them, and how costly getting them wrong can be.

Why getting it right matters more now

• The penalties are real and stated: up to £7,000 for an initial breach, and up to £40,000 or criminal prosecution for continuing or repeated breaches.
• With Section 21 gone, you can no longer rely on a no-fault route, so keeping every safety obligation clean, including gas, matters more than ever.
• A coming Private Rented Sector Database is expected to hold property and safety information; exactly what must be uploaded will be set out in later regulations, so it's one to watch rather than act on yet.