This comes up constantly, and from both sides — tenants who are not sure what they can ask for, and landlords who are not sure what they are obliged to provide.
The short version: keeping the property in proper condition, including its heating and its appliances, sits with the landlord. Making sure faults get reported promptly sits with the tenant. Neither side is served by silence.
If you are renting
Report problems in writing, even small ones, and keep the message. "The radiator in the back room has never worked" is a repair request; the same sentence said in passing six months ago is not evidence of anything.
Do not arrange gas work yourself, and do not let anybody who is not a Registered Gas Installer touch the boiler. If something is genuinely unsafe, say so clearly and in writing, and escalate rather than living with it.
If you are a landlord
Annual servicing by a registered installer, documented, is the baseline. Keep the certificates — they are what demonstrate the work was done, and "I am sure we had it done" is not a record.
Servicing between tenancies is by far the easiest time to do it. The property is empty, access is simple, and it starts the next tenancy with a clean record instead of an unknown.
Where it usually goes wrong
Almost always the same way: a small fault gets mentioned casually, nobody writes it down, and months later it has become a bigger fault and an argument about who knew what and when. A two-line email at the time prevents nearly all of it.
Getting it sorted
We service boilers for both owner-occupiers and landlords across County Cork, and we provide the documentation either way.
Book a service online, or get in touch if you manage more than one property and want to sort them together.