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Gas safety check: 6 ways to automate

Liam Jones

Liam JonesLinkedIn logo

Founder of Pilla

Date Modified

27 September 2026

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I'm Liam Jones, founder of Pilla and a qualified management consultant. I've helped hundreds of businesses set up workflows, and in this article I'm going to show you six real examples of how to set up your gas safety checks.

I'll start with the simplest version, then show you one addition at a time, so you can pick the options your business needs. You can open up each template in our workflow builder playground as a starting point and experiment for yourself.

If you're looking to automate this part of your operation, speak to an expert and we'll show you what it would take to set up.

The workflows at a glance

Article Content

What this is

This page covers gas safety check as editable playground workflow templates on Pilla’s canvas. Open a version, tweak the steps, and try it with your team. You are choosing how much you need around the same gas check: guidance, evidence, sign-off, or follow-up.

#1 - Simple checklist

Who it's for: Single-site businesses keeping the gas safety record themselves.

What it is: A gas safety check records that gas appliances are safe and certificated: a valid Gas Safe certificate on file, appliances and flues clear and undamaged, a blue flame, and no smell of gas. This version is a tick-list, a pass/fail, and a notes field.

In practice: You run the check in a pub kitchen: the certificate is in date, the burners are clean and burning blue, the vents are clear, and there's no gas smell. Record the pass and the certificate expiry. A few minutes, and a dated record.

Why it works: Gas safety rests on a valid annual certificate and day-to-day vigilance. A simple recurring check records that both are in hand.

Steps included:

  • 1 checklist (6 items)
  • 1 pass/fail result
  • 1 notes field

#2 - With guidance

Who it's for: Businesses where the check is delegated to rota staff.

What it is: The simple checklist with a guidance note on what only a Gas Safe engineer may do, the daily appliance and flue checks, the blue-flame and gas-smell rules, and where the shut-off is.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

  1. The controls and what to look for are on screen
  2. The check is consistent whoever runs it
  3. A new starter can run it from day one

Why it works: The guidance carries the detail, so the check doesn't depend on the person running it remembering it.

Steps included:

  • 1 guidance note (what only a Gas Safe engineer may do, daily checks, blue flame rule, gas-smell rule, shut-off location)
  • 1 checklist (6 items)
  • 1 pass/fail result
  • 1 notes field

#3 - With a signature

Who it's for: Businesses where the check needs a name against it. Groups where a different person runs it each time, or where head office wants to know who signed off the check.

What it is: A signed gas check is the simple checklist plus a signature captured at sign-off. The 6 tasks and the notes field stay the same; the signature confirms who did the check and when they signed it.

In practice: A kitchen with rotating staff. Whoever runs the check works through the 6 items, notes the certificate expiry and any issues, and signs. The next morning the manager knows exactly who to ask about any notes, so a leftover note becomes a named follow-up.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

  1. A signature naming who did the check, captured at sign-off
  2. A record of when the check was signed, next to what was ticked
  3. Accountability without asking anyone to take a photo

Why it works: The name goes on the record at the moment the work finishes, not from memory later. When something is found to be an issue, the conversation starts with who signed it off, which is specific instead of general.

Steps included:

  • 1 checklist (6 items)
  • 1 pass/fail result
  • 1 notes field
  • 1 signature (sign-off)

#4 - With photo evidence

Who it's for: Teams that want photo proof the check was done to standard, with the gas meter in the shot for an auditor, head office, or their own records.

What it is: The simple checklist plus a photo of the gas meter and isolation valve after checking, taken on completion as a record alongside the ticks. One specific, telling spot rather than a vague wide shot.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

  1. A photo of the gas meter and isolation valve, captured at the time
  2. Proof that holds up to an inspector because the named spot is in the photo
  3. A visual record kept alongside the checklist

Why it works: A photo taken on completion is far stronger than a tick. It shows the state things were left in when the job finished, so the record proves the work was done. A single named spot like the gas meter is easy to shoot and easy to check.

Steps included:

  • 1 checklist (6 items)
  • 1 pass/fail result
  • 1 notes field
  • 1 photo of the gas meter and isolation valve

#5 - With Pilla checking the photo

Who it's for: Sites where the photo gets taken but nobody looks at it. Multi-site groups where head office can't review every site's photos every day.

What it is: A photo-checked gas check is the simple checklist plus a photo of the gas meter and isolation valve that Pilla reviews the moment it's saved. Pilla answers one question about that photo, set by you: does the gas meter and isolation valve show a clean, safe state with no corrosion, leaks, or damage visible? A single named spot gives an AI something clear to judge. If the answer is no, Pilla posts what it spotted to the team chat, so the problem gets fixed before everyone leaves.

In practice: A three-site hospitality group runs a daily 7am gas check at each location before opening. The closing person photographs the gas meter and valve as always. Pilla reads the photo: clean connections, no discolouration, valve in good order. Verdict yes, and nothing changes. On a cold Monday the photo shows frost-like corrosion on a connection. Pilla answers no and posts the reason to the team chat ("The photo shows corrosion on the gas connection that needs attention"). The manager gets it sorted before service begins.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

  1. A photo of the gas meter and isolation valve that gets checked the moment it's saved, so problems are caught before anyone leaves
  2. A team chat message with Pilla's reason the moment a photo fails the check
  3. The manager stops being the only person who ever looks at the photos

Why it works: The check happens in the seconds between the photo being taken and the staff member moving on. That is the only moment the problem is still cheap to fix. Reviewing photos the next morning only records that something looked wrong; catching a yellow flame or gas smell on the day gets it fixed right away.

Steps included:

  • 1 checklist (6 items)
  • 1 pass/fail result
  • 1 notes field
  • 1 photo of the gas meter and isolation valve
  • 1 Pilla decision (judges the photo against your question)
  • 1 Pilla action (posts to the team chat if the photo fails the check)

#6 - With a team alert if the check is overdue

Who it's for: Groups where each location must run a gas safety check by a set time. Those that open early the next day, sites in shared buildings with morning inspections, and groups where a missed check gets overlooked.

What it is: An overdue-check alert is the simple checklist plus a Pilla action set to the workflow's end time. If the gas safety check isn't finished by the checking deadline, Pilla posts a message in the Pilla team chat so the missed check gets flagged before the site starts service or changes shift. It watches the deadline, so it catches the check that quietly got skipped, and a half-finished round raises its own alert.

In practice: A multi-site cafe chain does a daily 7:30am gas safety check at each location before opening. On a busy Monday one site's staff forgets the check, and it never gets logged. With this version, if the check isn't finished by 7:30am, the area manager's team chat gets a message, so they catch the missing check that morning rather than discovering days later that one site opened without its safety check done.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

  1. A message in the team chat if the check isn't finished on time
  2. A catch for the check that got skipped, and a half-finished round raises its own alert.
  3. A record of when the check should have been done, next to when it was
  4. The manager finds out that day, not later

Why it works: The alert is tied to the checking deadline, so a missed check raises its own hand. Nobody has to manually track whether each check was run; the deadline does it automatically.

Steps included:

  • 1 checklist (6 items)
  • 1 pass/fail result
  • 1 notes field
  • 1 Pilla action (posts to the team chat if the check isn't finished by deadline)

How to pick the right version

You don't need to know our product to choose. Every version here is the simple checklist plus one addition. Pick the additions your team needs, and skip the rest.

Do other people run the check?

If you run it yourself and know the method, the plain list is enough: #1. The moment anyone else runs it, put the controls and what to look for on screen: #2.

Does the check need a name against it?

If knowing it was done is enough, skip this one. If you want who ran it on the record, #3 adds a signature.

Do you need photo proof?

A ticked checklist says the work was done; a photo shows it. If you want visual proof of the gas meter and valve, #4 adds a photo.

Does anyone look at the photos?

If a manager reviews every photo, #4's record is enough. If photos get taken and filed unseen, #5 has Pilla check each one as it's saved, and tell the team chat when something's wrong.

Does the check have to be finished by a set time?

If a busy team sometimes skips the check or forgets it, #6 posts a message to the team chat when the deadline passes with the check still not done.

Need more than one addition? Open the version with the addition that matters most in the playground and add the others as steps. That's how the product works anyway: every option here is one step added to the same list.

Conclusion

Gas safety rests on a valid annual certificate and day-to-day vigilance, a blue flame, clear vents, and no smell of gas. These checks are how you show both are in hand. Every version above is the same simple checklist plus one addition: guidance, a signature, a photo, an AI check on the photo, or a deadline alert. Pick the ones you need and combine them in the playground.

===SQLDATA=== PHOTO_INSTRUCTION: A close photo of the gas meter and isolation valve, showing connections and valve condition. JUDGE_QUESTION: Does the gas meter and isolation valve show a clean, safe state with no corrosion, leaks, or damage visible? ALERT_MESSAGE: The gas safety check hasn't been completed by the scheduled time. Please check and record the result now. ===END===