Safety in your home

To make sure appliances in your home are working safely, it's essential that you have a gas safety check each year and keep a valid gas safety certificate.

Protect yourself from gas leaks

If you think you can smell gas, you should:

• Call the National Grid immediately on 0800 111 999
• Turn off the gas at your meter
• Open all windows.

If you smell gas, do not:

• Switch on or off lights, appliances or other electrical items
• Bring naked flames (like matches or cigarette lighters) into your home.

Once you've contacted the National Grid they'll send someone to check for leaks. If they find any leaks they will turn off your gas supply and ask you to contact us or your gas contractor.

Faulty electrical supplies can cause serious injury or death. Damaged or faulty equipment can lead to electrical shocks, fires and explosions.

How do we manage this risk?

We have an ongoing programme of checks and maintenance of communal electrical supplies as well as those in your home. In this programme we provide Electrical Installation Condition Reports on all communal electrical supplies. If we spot any damaged or faulty systems we will carry out required repairs. In every case our electricians will always make sure electrical supplies are safe before they leave the property.

We will respond to any reports of damaged or faulty supplies and we may need to turn off some or all power if we cannot make it safe on the first visit. We will always repair the supply as soon as possible. In some cases we may need to prioritise repairs in the homes of more vulnerable residents.

What should you know and do about the risk?

Please do not carry out your own electrical repairs. If you think a socket in your property or an electrical supply in a communal area is damaged or faulty please tell your housing officer straight away, or if you're a homeowner you will need to arrange for an electrician to attend.

If you think any electrical items in your home are damaged then contact a professional electrician for advice.

It’s important to maintain any electrical items in your home and make sure they are undamaged, always be conscious not to overload your sockets.

Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas. It's colourless, odourless and tasteless but it can be fatal.

Carbon monoxide can escape from appliances like boilers and fires if they are not working properly. Carbon monoxide gas can also be produced if your gas appliance is faulty, or if the chimney or flue is blocked.

The danger signs of carbon monoxide are:

• Gas flames that normally burn blue, burning orange or yellow
• Sooty stains on or above appliances.

To make sure everything is working safely it's essential that you have a valid gas safety certificate by getting a gas safety check done every year.

What is Legionella and Legionnaires’ Disease?

Legionella is a bacteria found in natural water sources. Legionella bacteria can enter a person’s lungs through the air, when they breathe in small water droplets from a contaminated source. Legionella bacteria can then cause Legionnaires’ disease, a form of pneumonia, which can be fatal.

Legionella can sometimes find its way into human-made water systems. It will only become dangerous in these systems if conditions are right for the bacteria to grow. We take measures to ensure levels of legionella bacteria are controlled in our buildings but there are additional steps residents can take in their homes.

What does Notting Hill Genesis do to control Legionella bacteria?

We carry out risk assessments on the water systems in our buildings to make sure the water supply is safe. If these assessments identify a risk, we will either remove that risk or carry out a regular programme to control it. This could include regularly cleaning tanks and testing water samples.

What can I do to reduce the risk of Legionella in my home?

There are some measures you can take in your own home to reduce the risk of legionella.

We recommend:

• Regularly cleaning and de-scaling shower heads and taps to prevent the build-up of limescale, mould and algae growth.
• Flush any water outlets you do not use on a daily basis at least once a week. You flush them by carefully running the tap or shower for at least five minutes.
• Whenever you go on holiday or are away from your property for more than a week, run the taps and shower for at least five minutes before using them.
• If you have a garden hosepipe, make sure you drain it after use each time. Run it for five minutes before using it again and descale it regularly.
• Make sure your hot water cylinders are set at 60°C or above.
• Report anything unusual you spot in your water system to us.

When flushing any taps or showers, remember to do so in a way that means you do not breath in any water spray produced.

We provide at least a night latch for the door of tenants' homes. You may want to fit more locks on doors and windows for extra security.

If you lose your door keys or get locked out of your home, you'll need to arrange for someone to get in and change the lock. If you have any difficulties, we may be able to arrange for a locksmith to do the work for you but we will charge you the full cost.

If you share a front door with other tenants, it is against fire regulations to fit certain types of locks. You must always consult us before changing a lock or fitting a new lock on a shared front door.

Bogus callers

To stay safe in your home, it's important to check the identity of all callers before you let them in. Our staff members carry identity cards with photographs that they should show you, as should representatives from other organisations such as gas and electricity companies, the local council and contractors we hire.

If you're suspicious of somebody calling at your home, do not let them in, but call the police or the organisation that they claim to represent.

Online scams

Please watch out for suspicious emails and other online scams, especially those asking you to click on links. They are often created by criminals pretending to be a recognised organisation to trick you into sharing personal information.

If you receive any unusual emails that appear to be from Notting Hill Genesis or any organisations associated with us, please let your local officer know in the first instance. The easiest way to get in touch is via My Account. Do not click on any links in the email.

Should we become aware of any cyber attacks against us which have compromised the data we hold about you, we would contact you directly.

You can find more information about cyber-crime here.

Where we know about specific attempts at fraud, either locally or nationally, we will include them on our known attempts at fraud page.