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ART News |
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Association of Retail Trade partners with British Gas Business to help retailers avoid compliance risk
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Failure to carry out annual boiler checks could land retailers with a £20,000 fine
The Association of Retail Trade has partnered with British Gas Business to help retailers comply with basic gas regulations, in light of research that highlights that one million retailers and other small businesses could face hefty fines for failing to comply with basic gas regulations.
All businesses have a legal responsibility to maintain a safe heating system and to have their boilers checked annually. Yet in a British Gas Business survey of retailers and other small businesses who rely heavily on hot water and central heating , half (48%) admit to having either no understanding or a limited understanding of gas regulations and compliance, or to being unaware of the Gas Safety Regulations 1998 (49%).
The implications of non-compliance could be devastating for a retail business - the fine for breaching gas safety regulations is a maximum of £20,000 or in the worst case scenario, imprisonment. Businesses also risk boiler failure if they do not carry out regular checks on their boilers.
The British Gas Business survey revealed that in general, businesses have a limited understanding of the significant impact that a boiler breakdown can have on a business. On the other hand regular boiler checks can also help to lengthen the life of a boiler and maintain efficiency, but few businesses (one in five) make the connection between regular maintenance and the energy efficiency of their boiler.
In order to help retailers meet their legal obligations, maintain the efficiency of their boilers and avoid boiler and central heating breakdown, British Gas Business offers the British Gas BusinessCare range. Customers will receive a full annual safety inspection from Gas Safe registered engineers who will provide businesses with a detailed gas safety record to ensure compliance with Gas Safety Regulations. The range also includes unlimited breakdown call outs, a 24-hour hotline and parts and labour.
The Association of Retail Trade has partnered with British Gas Business to ensure that retailers are compliant with regulations and are not adversely affected by boiler breakdown.
Neeraj Bhatia, President of the Association of Retail Trade. "It is important that our members understand the importance of the Gas Safety Regulations. For the majority of our members the thought of a boiler breakdown would cause great loss of earnings, and the British Gas BusinessCare range provides our members with peace of mind and with an unbeatable reputation."
Jeff Whittingham, Director of Energy Services, at British Gas Business, says: "As retailers struggle through the recession, the last thing they want is to be faced with a hefty fine or a boiler breakdown. We offer British Gas BusinessCare, which automatically provides a regular boiler check, a 24x7 call out and annual safety inspection, so if your boiler does fail, you can have it fixed quickly and minimise disruption to your business."
With nearly 3 million (61%) small businesses stating that central heating and hot water is critical to the day to day operation of their business, boiler issues could lead to temporary closure and financial upheaval. On average boilers break down every 20 seconds and can be extremely expensive to repair - the average cost for a call-out, with replacement parts and labour is £350.
For further information, please visit www.britishgas.co.uk/businesscare
Notes to editors
For further information, please contact:
Pasca Lane or Sam Billet on:
Tel: 020 7260 2700
pasca.lane@bluerubicon.com
sam.billett@bluerubicon.com
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