Gas engineer software: CP12 records, servicing and jobs

What do landlord gas safety rules require?

Regulation 36 of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 sets the core landlord duties for gas safety. A landlord gas safety check is required at least every 12 months. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work, so the check and any associated work fall within that registration requirement. Each record must be kept for at least 2 years. A copy must go to tenants within 28 days, and to new tenants before they move in. Checks can be done up to 2 months early without losing the original anniversary date. That early window allows the next check to be arranged before the current record expires while preserving the existing anniversary. HSE enforcement applies to these duties. The annual check sits within a wider set of record, notification and retention duties. The record keeping and tenant copy rules run alongside the annual check, so the required dates, copies and storage periods form a single compliance timetable. Software that logs the anniversary, stores the record and prompts the tenant copy supports that timetable, but the legal duties remain with the landlord.

Gas engineer software handles landlord gas safety records, often called CP12s, service sheets, reminders and invoices on one device. That centralisation matters because the legal timetable includes dates that need tracking and records that need retrieval. A reminder can mark the next check, the tenant copy deadline or the end of the 2 year retention period. Digital storage can hold the record for inspection and for tenant issue. The rules do not require a particular software product, format or device. They require the check, the record, the tenant copy and the retention period. Enforcement by HSE can follow a failure to meet those duties. For a landlord, the copy to tenants within 28 days and the copy to new tenants before move in are separate deadlines from the check itself. For the engineer, the record content and the registration requirement are the points that support the landlord's compliance. A system that logs the check, stores the record and flags the copy dates can reduce administrative gaps, while the underlying duties remain fixed by the regulations. Those duties apply whether the record is paper or digital.

What is a CP12 and is that still the right name?

The term CP12 is the old CORGI era name. In current practice the document is described as a landlord gas safety record. The underlying purpose is to record the outcome of the landlord gas safety check required at least every 12 months. A CP12 and a landlord gas safety record refer to the same compliance document in common usage. The regulations set duties around the check, the record and the tenant copy. They do not make the CP12 name a legal requirement. A document called a landlord gas safety record can meet the same function. The record is the evidence that the check took place and that the required dates were tracked. The key point is that the record evidences the check and supports the retention and tenant notification duties. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work, so the record is produced within that registration framework. The name used on the sheet does not alter the annual check, the 2 year retention period or the 28 day tenant copy deadline. Those duties apply to the record regardless of its title.

Any format that meets the required content is acceptable for a landlord gas safety record. The regulations are concerned with the record's content and the duties attached to it, not with a prescribed title or a single paper layout. A record headed CP12, landlord gas safety record or another equivalent title can be used where the required content is present. Digital storage and paper storage both feature in the operational handling of records, and gas engineer software commonly produces the record on the same device used for service sheets, reminders and invoices. The record must be kept for at least 2 years and a copy must go to tenants within 28 days and to new tenants before they move in. The 2 month early check window does not change the original anniversary date, so the record and the next check date need to remain linked. The CP12 label can persist as shorthand, but the legal test is the content and the compliance steps, not the label. HSE enforcement can apply where the record and notification duties are not met. That position applies to digital and paper records alike.

Paper vs software for gas engineers

A comparison table for paper and software in gas engineering can cover record creation, storage, retrieval, reminders, invoicing and handover. Paper records are physical documents. They depend on filing, manual diary entries and separate invoices. Software can hold landlord gas safety records, often called CP12s, service sheets, reminders and invoices on one device. The comparison is not only about the form itself. It also concerns how a business finds a record later, how it proves that a check took place and how it passes a copy to the landlord or tenant. Under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, landlords need an annual check and must keep each record for 2 years. That storage period gives weight to digital retrieval and to a clear record history. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work, so the record set also ties back to the engineer who attended. A table can set these points side by side without treating paper or software as automatically superior. The entries in such a table are descriptive rather than a ranking. It can note where each method relies on manual steps and where digital storage changes the task.

Reminders are a central row in the comparison. A landlord gas safety check is due at least every 12 months. Checks can be done up to 2 months early without losing the original anniversary date. A reminder set against that anniversary can prompt the next check and the associated service work. In paper systems, the reminder depends on a diary, a wall chart or a separate calendar. Software can link the reminder to the CP12 record, the service sheet and the invoice on one device. That link can turn a compliance date into repeat work because the next check, service and invoice are visible together. The same record set supports the legal handover: a copy goes to tenants within 28 days and to new tenants before they move in. Each record is kept for at least 2 years. A comparison table can show that paper and software both carry the same legal dates. The difference lies in how the dates are stored, found and acted on. Reminders therefore sit at the point where record keeping meets repeat work. That point is relevant to a business that wants continuity between compliance and planned servicing.

Which forms should gas software cover?

The forms set in gas engineer software can be viewed as a linked list rather than isolated documents. It can include landlord gas safety records, often called CP12s, service sheets, reminders and invoices on one device. The CP12 side connects to the legal duty: landlords need an annual check, each record is kept for at least 2 years, a copy goes to tenants within 28 days and to new tenants before they move in. Checks can be done up to 2 months early without losing the original anniversary date. The service sheet side records the servicing work that sits alongside the check. The reminder side carries the next date into the diary. The invoice side links the completed work to payment. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work, so the forms area also needs to hold the engineer and site details that make the record meaningful. A list of forms can show how each document supports the next step without treating any one form as separate from the record set. The list can be grouped by work type and by site.

Warning notices form a further category in the forms area. A warning notice records an unsafe situation and gives the person responsible a clear document of the issue. Software can keep the notice alongside the CP12, service sheet and invoice so that the record set is complete. The same forms area can cover commercial categories alongside domestic records. Commercial work can involve different sites, appliances and record types, so the list of forms may need separate headings for those categories. The point is not to invent new legal duties. It is to make each form easy to find under the existing record set. Reminders can then link back to the next annual check, whether the site is domestic or commercial. The legal dates remain the same where the landlord duties apply: at least every 12 months, records kept for at least 2 years, copies within 28 days and to new tenants before they move in, and checks up to 2 months early without losing the anniversary. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work. A forms list that follows these categories gives paper and software users the same map of documents.

Features to test in a trial

A trial of gas engineer software can test whether the core workflow covers landlord gas safety records, often called CP12s, service sheets, reminders and invoices on one device. The trial can begin with offline mode, because gas work may take place where a signal is weak. The test can record a service and a landlord gas safety check without a connection, then confirm that the entries sync when a connection returns. Appliance history is another area for review. The trial can reopen a property, view earlier appliance entries and check whether the software carries forward details without losing the audit trail. Reminder automation can be tested against the statutory timing. Under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, landlords need an annual check at least every 12 months and must keep each record for at least 2 years. Checks can be done up to 2 months early without losing the original anniversary date. A trial can set a reminder, move a date and confirm that the record and the reminder remain aligned. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work, so the trial can also check how registration details appear on records.

PDF quality can be checked by producing a landlord gas safety record and a service sheet, then opening the files on a phone and a desktop. The trial can confirm that text, dates, appliance details, engineer details and signatures remain legible, and that the PDF matches the on screen record. The invoice link can be tested by creating a job, raising an invoice and checking whether the invoice connects to the correct property, landlord and record. Export can be tested by taking a copy of the data in a common format and confirming that the exported file opens without loss. The return visit test is a practical check: reopen last year's record for the same property, add a new check and confirm that the software preserves the earlier record while creating a new entry. Under the regulations, each record is kept for at least 2 years, and a copy goes to tenants within 28 days and to new tenants before they move in. The trial can verify that the software produces those copies from the stored record and that the export includes the full history. The test can also confirm that only Gas Safe registered engineers appear as the engineer on gas work records.

Pricing models and team size

Pricing for gas engineer software can follow different models, and the main comparison is between per user plans and flat plans. A per user plan charges according to the number of people who need access to the software. A flat plan applies one arrangement to the business, with limits on users, records or features set by the supplier. The model can affect a sole engineer differently from a team. A sole engineer may need one login, offline access and a simple record history, while a team may need multiple logins, shared job allocation and consistent CP12 records across engineers. The trial can be used to compare how each model handles the same workflow: a landlord gas safety check, a service sheet, a reminder and an invoice. Under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, landlords need an annual check at least every 12 months and must keep each record for at least 2 years, so the record storage and reminder functions are part of the core product rather than an add on. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work, and team plans can be checked for how they manage engineer registration details. A link to the pricing guide can provide the current plan structure and any published limits without relying on assumptions.

The team size can change the effect of a pricing model. A per user plan can be straightforward for a sole engineer because the user count is fixed and the record owner is clear. As the team grows, the same model can add a cost for each additional user, so the trial can test whether each engineer needs a full licence or whether office staff can use a limited role. A flat plan can suit a small team that shares a steady volume of work, but the supplier's limits on users, storage or features can matter when the team expands. The comparison can include how the software handles shared records, because a landlord gas safety record may be created by one engineer and reviewed by another. The regulations require each record to be kept for at least 2 years, a copy to tenants within 28 days and a copy to new tenants before they move in. Those tasks can involve office staff as well as the engineer, so the plan can be checked for the number and type of user roles it includes. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work, and the software can be checked for how it separates engineer records from administrative access. Plan names, user limits and feature sets appear in the pricing guide.

Data, retention and switching

Gas engineer software handles landlord gas safety records, often called CP12s, service sheets, reminders and invoices on one device. Under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, landlords need an annual check and must keep each record for 2 years. That retention period applies to the record itself, and digital storage and reminders are core features of software used for this work. The data held in such systems can include landlord and tenant details, so UK GDPR applies to that personal data. The software therefore holds both compliance records and personal data within the same workflow. The same device can hold the CP12 record alongside the service sheet and invoice for the job and the landlord. Records may be needed for the full 2 year period, and a copy must go to tenants within 28 days and to new tenants before they move in. Checks can be done up to 2 months early without losing the original anniversary date. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work. These requirements shape how records are stored, found and exported.

When a business changes software, exporting 2 years of records supports continuity of the CP12 history and the landlord and tenant data linked to it. The export needs to cover the retention period used for landlord gas safety records, and it needs to include the service sheets, reminders and invoices held on the device. UK GDPR applies to the personal data in that export, so the process involves both the compliance record and the personal data attached to it. A link to the switching guide is provided for the practical steps involved in moving records between systems. The guide sets out the export of 2 years of records, the handling of landlord and tenant data under UK GDPR, and the checks needed before old access is closed. The annual check cycle continues during any switch, with records kept for 2 years and copies issued within 28 days to tenants and before new tenants move in. Checks can be done up to 2 months early without losing the original anniversary date. Only Gas Safe registered engineers may carry out gas work.

Frequently asked questions

How long must a landlord keep a gas safety record?

At least 2 years under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998.

Can a gas safety check be done early?

Yes, up to 2 months before the due date while keeping the original anniversary date.

Is CP12 still required?

The legal requirement is a landlord gas safety record; CP12 is a legacy name for it.

Who can carry out a landlord gas safety check?

Only a Gas Safe registered engineer.

How quickly must tenants receive the record?

Within 28 days of the check, and before a new tenant moves in.