Owning one
Safety: gas, electrics, carbon monoxide and fire
Gas and electrical checks, carbon monoxide alarms, and the fire safety rules that shape how holiday parks are laid out — what the law says, what’s recommended, and what changes if you let the caravan.
On this page
At a glance
- Only a Gas Safe registered engineer may work on gas appliances — check their card covers LPG and caravans.
- A yearly gas safety check is a legal requirement if you let the caravan, and often a park condition if you don’t.
- The NCC recommends two CO alarms meeting BS EN 50291, tested monthly and replaced about every five years.
- On holiday parks in England, caravans are normally at least 5 m apart, with a fire point within 30 m.
Gas
- It is illegal for anyone who isn’t on the Gas Safe Register to work on gas appliances (the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998). Use an engineer whose ID card shows they’re qualified for LPG and for caravans and leisure accommodation vehicles (or park homes, as appropriate).
- Gas Safe Register says fixed LPG appliances should be serviced and safety-checked every year.
- If you let the caravan, even short-term, you have legal duties as a landlord, including a yearly gas safety check — see letting your caravan. For your own use only there’s no legal requirement for a yearly check, but parks commonly make one a condition of the agreement (Parkdean, for example).
Carbon monoxide
The NCC’s carbon monoxide booklet (March 2026) says:
- NCC member manufacturers now fit CO alarms in all new holiday caravans, lodges and park homes — gas-fuelled and all-electric;
- it recommends two alarms — one in the hallway near the bedrooms and one in the main living area — meeting BS EN 50291;
- test them every month and replace them about every 5 years;
- never block ventilation, and never bring a lit or smouldering barbecue or a gas stove inside.
Gas Safe Register also strongly recommends an audible CO alarm.
The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 apply to tenancies where the property is someone’s only or main home — so they don’t cover holiday caravans. The NCC’s recommendations above still apply.
Electrics
Electrical Safety First recommends a periodic inspection and test every 3 years for a caravan, by a competent person such as a registered electrician. The result is an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR). Parks often require an electrical test — Parkdean, for example, every three years (2026).
The park’s own supply is covered too: the 1989 Model Standards for holiday caravan sites in England require the site’s electrical installations to meet the wiring regulations and to be inspected at least every 3 years, with a certificate displayed alongside the site licence.
Fire safety on the park
Councils in England set holiday park licence conditions with regard to the Model Standards 1989: Holiday Caravan Sites. They include:
| Model standard | What it says |
|---|---|
| Spacing | At least 5 m between aluminium-type caravans (3.5 m at the corners); 6 m for plywood-skinned caravans or mixed sites |
| Porches and awnings | Open porches may stick out 1 m into the gap; awnings must be at least 3 m from neighbouring caravans |
| Between caravans | Only non-combustible sheds or garages; nothing combustible stored under or between caravans; one car between neighbouring caravans |
| Density | No more than 60 caravans per hectare of usable land |
| Roads | At least 3.7 m wide (3 m if one-way); no pitch more than 50 m from a road |
| Fire points | No caravan more than 30 m from a fire point with hose reels or extinguishers (or water), a way of raising the alarm and a fire action notice; equipment tested and logged; a phone available for emergencies |
| Gas cylinders | LPG stored to industry codes; exposed cylinders not within the separation zone of a neighbouring caravan |
In England and Wales, licence conditions can’t duplicate fire safety matters already covered by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005; in Scotland the equivalent law is the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005.
Your agreement will reflect these rules: keep the space between caravans clear, no combustible structures between units, keep the underside clear, and follow the parking rules. If you think a park is breaking its site licence — on spacing or fire points, say — that’s a matter for the council’s licensing or environmental health team, not the NCC.
If you let the caravan
In England, if you let to paying guests the Fire Safety Order applies to the caravan, and you must carry out a written fire risk assessment. The government’s guidance suggests smoke alarms in escape routes, living areas and bedrooms, heat alarms in kitchens, and CO alarms where there are gas or solid-fuel appliances, with a simpler five-step checklist for caravans. More in letting your caravan.
For practical safety kit, see our owner’s kit.
Sources
Checked 6 October 2026. We wrote this guide from these sources, in our own words:
- NCC: Stay safe — carbon monoxide (March 2026) (thencc.org.uk)
- Gas Safe Register: LPG safety (gassaferegister.co.uk)
- HSE: Gas safety — who is a landlord (hse.gov.uk)
- HSE: Gas safety records (hse.gov.uk)
- Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015, regulation 2 (legislation.gov.uk)
- Electrical Safety First: periodic inspection (electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk)
- Model Standards 1989: Holiday Caravan Sites (council-hosted copy) (wirral.gov.uk)
- Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960, section 5 (legislation.gov.uk)
- NCC model Combined Purchase and Licence Agreement (June 2024) (thencc.org.uk)
- NCC IDRS complaints guidance (October 2024) (thencc.org.uk)
- GOV.UK: Making your small paying guest accommodation safe from fire (gov.uk)
- Parkdean Resorts: running costs (parkdeanresorts.co.uk)
Travel Trailers is an independent guide. It is not owned by, or connected to, any holiday park operator, caravan manufacturer, dealer or trade body. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.