I don't want to let gas man in

[Whyohwhy99]

I don't want to let the gas man in. I have already cancelled twice. Every year I get warning letters.. I don't want to let anyone in. I don't want have any form of interaction. I don't want anyone physically in my house. I don't even know when they are coming. I just know its an afternoon appointment.

Neither have I. That's why I am asking if they are a tennent not a home owner.

I have an appointment.

op, I know its hard, but the longer you live like this, the harder life will be. You are massively over thinking and anxious and this will continue to get worse if you keep going as you are. I'm glad you have a GP appointment and perhaps can get some help and work out what may be driving this. It could be ND, social anxiety, GAD or a host of things.

OP you mention your kids - are they teenagers or young adults?
Would you feel better if one of them dealt with the gas man, let him in, showed him the appliances etc?

OP I know exactly how you feel. When my kids were expecting friends I would hide upstairs pretending to be in the shower in case they came in.The gas people deal with customers all day, they won't think anything about it, you're not a prat. It sounds like anxiety and depression, please speak to your doctor and tell him, it's nothing they won't have heard already.

Do you think you might have agoraphobia?
I hope you can get the help you need.

Don’t you have your gas boiler, hob, fire serviced every year?

Our old gas fire was condemned after a service!

Because that's how entire families are found dead or children of next door neighbours die in gas explosions.

Don't be silly. It's really obvious that the OP is struggling.

I haven't read your other threads. How old are the children? Are any of them old enough to deal with the gas check while you stay in your room?

Do you ever leave the house? If so if it's rented can you arrange that the landlord or agency you rent from do the check and take yourself to a different safe place? (Though I not sure this would work as I assume you don't leave the house and wouldn't want them in either).

No, that's not long enough to do a proper check. My son does this for a job. He has to chaleck all appliances that require gas and it's a legal requirement

Because gas explosions rarely just affect the person in the home who has accepted the risk, they can affect neighbouring home and their occupants.

That might be a risk you’re willing to take, and that’s your prerogative if you’re a home owner, but if you’re a tenant then it’s tough shit - you have to get it done or get evicted. Landlords face big penalties for non compliance with gas safety regulations.

Is your oldest son available, could you arrange the visit when he's on his day off and he could pop in to assist. You could arrange for the gas man to message when he's 30-60 mins away, you could stay in your living room or garden and your son deal with him.

If the person is renting. Landlord whether it is private or social housing have a legal obligation to check boilers/appliances and the meter yearly. If you are a home owner you are under no obligation to do this.

I feel for you OP.

I had a gas safety check a few weeks ago and only have a boiler that needed checking (no gas hob/fires, etc) and that took about 30 minutes.

Edited to add he checked the meter too.

To add to this, I refused the gas man a few times, and got charged for it.
Refusing for no good reason will cost you money.

It sounds like you are suffering from extreme anxiety. Well done for making a GP appointment. Please make sure you go, even if it's a struggle. Nobody deserves such simple tasks to cause so much distress. And if it's any help, the gasman shouldn't be in your house that long at all.

OP is it the thought of a man in your house or just anyone in your house? For example, if you phoned the gas company and requested a female engineer visit your property instead of a male, would that make it easier for you?

So what do you think it does come under? It's certainly not rational, is it?

I'm not 'calling her out'. I haven't criticised her in the slightest. I'm offering her the best advice I can give.

And no, nobody 'made me a doctor' which is exactly why I'm suggesting she goes to one, FFS.

It's obvious that the OP is distressed and needs help, and you'd probably need to see her other threads to see the full extent of that. I didn't go trawling through searches for them. I recognised her user name from her recent threads, which meant I had the (rather important, I think) context for this current one.

The OP has nothing to be ashamed of and really, really deserves to get the care that could help her feel better. Nobody should have to suffer her level of anxiety and low mood without treatment; it's horrible for anyone to go through that with no help. Having had some serious mental health episodes myself, I can assure you I know all too well how hard it can be to manage, especially when there are lots of other things happening in your life that you're trying to keep on top of.

I don't particularly enjoy having tradesmen in my home either, but you just have to grit your teeth and get on with it. That's not meant to be unsympathetic, but there's no other way round it really. You'll feel better when it's done.

If you’ve only got a boiler and a hob, it probably is all in the kitchen that means they will go in one room only. Good to hear you’ve got an appointment next week.

OP, YABU.

Gas safety checks aren’t optional. They exist because faulty appliances and leaking pipes can affect the entire building and surrounding neighbors.

If your gas appliances are unsafe, it’s not just you who could be harmed. Your neighbours could be put at risk because gas leaks spread through floors, walls and shared pipework.

There have been real cases where buildings have exploded due to undetected gas faults. That’s why these checks are a legal requirement and why delaying them isn’t just inconvenient — it’s dangerous.

Dragging this out wastes time, costs your landlord money, and increases risk for everyone around you. Anxiety is real, but this should have been dealt with at the first appointment.

No they won’t, they will need to check the smoke/co alarms, gas meter and whatever the ECV is located.

Its better to let the gas man OR gas woman in to the house than to die of carbon monoxide poisoning.