One in three ‘accidental landlords’ breaking the law

A third of those questioned get their boilers checked less than once a year, and 23 per cent, only check every three years or less;

A similar number do not get other gas appliances checked every year, again, a legal requirement for rented properties. Statistics show thousands of people end up in A&E every year due to carbon monoxide poisoning and around 50 will die as a result;

Sixty five per cent of those with a chimney will get it swept less than once every three years. In 2011-2012 there were around 6,000 chimney fires in England alone;

Nearly a third check the electrics in their rented property less than once in three years. Half of all domestic fires are caused by faulty electrics;

Only 50 per cent of landlords get their fire alarms checked every year.