Gas emergency guidance
I can smell gas in my home — what to do right now
Natural gas is odourless. The rotten-egg smell you notice is a stenching agent (mercaptan) added specifically so leaks can be found by smell. If you smell it inside, treat it as a live emergency until proven otherwise.
Do this right now
A smell of gas — that rotten-egg or sulphur odour — means gas is leaking somewhere. Do not investigate it yourself. Get out, ventilate, and call the emergency line before doing anything else.
- 1
Get everyone out of the property
Take children, pets and anyone vulnerable outside immediately. Do not stop to gather belongings.
- 2
Open windows and doors on the way out
Ventilating dilutes the gas. If it's safe and quick, open the front and back door as you leave — do not go looking for windows in rooms you don't have to enter.
- 3
Turn the gas off at the meter — only if you can reach it safely
Turn the emergency control valve (the handle on the pipe next to the meter) a quarter turn so it sits at 90° to the pipe. If the meter is in a cellar, cupboard or somewhere the smell is strong, skip this step and leave.
- 4
Call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999
Free, 24/7. They will attend, make the property safe and issue a warning notice or a formal 'left at risk' report. Call from outside the property, not from a phone inside.
- 5
Wait outside until an engineer arrives
Do not re-enter until the emergency engineer says it is safe. Warn neighbours if the smell is in a shared building.
Do NOT do these
- Do not switch any electrical switches on or off (that includes light switches).
- Do not use a mobile phone, doorbell or intercom inside the property.
- Do not smoke, light a match or use a lighter.
- Do not try to trace the leak yourself.
- Do not restart any gas appliance.
- Do not drive a vehicle in an attached garage until ventilated.
Once the property is made safe
After the National Gas Emergency Service has attended and issued their paperwork, a Gas Safe registered engineer needs to make the follow-up repair before the gas can be turned back on. Only book us after the immediate emergency has been handled.
- The emergency engineer will make the leak safe and cap the appliance, meter or pipe involved. They do not carry out repairs.
- You will be handed a warning notice (yellow or red label). Keep it — a Gas Safe registered engineer needs to see it before restoring supply.
- Only a Gas Safe engineer can permanently repair the leak and re-commission your appliances.
- If the leak was tenant-reported, notify your landlord immediately — repair is their legal responsibility under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998.
KJ Plumbers promise: no call-out fee, transparent written quote before any work, and if we can't fix the fault we diagnosed there is still nothing to pay us. All gas work carried out only by Gas Safe registered engineers — ask for the card on arrival.