Book Companion · Chapters 28 to 30
Emergency: safe first actions
If anyone is in immediate danger, or there is a fire, call 999. Your safety comes before your property.
Smell gas or suspect carbon monoxide
Open doors and windows, do not use light switches or anything that could make a spark, put out naked flames, turn off the gas at the meter if you can do so safely, and leave the property.
Great Britain: 0800 111 999 (Gas Emergency Service, free, 24 hours)
Northern Ireland: 0800 002 001 (Northern Ireland Gas Emergency Service, 24 hours)
If anyone feels unwell with headache, dizziness or nausea, get them into fresh air and call 999.
Power cut or damaged electrics
Check whether neighbours are affected. Do not touch damaged cables, sockets or anything wet near electrics.
Great Britain: 105 (free, from any phone)
Northern Ireland: 03457 643 643 (NIE Networks)
If there is a fire, sparking or a risk of electric shock, keep clear and call 999.
Water leak
Turn off the water at the internal stop tap, usually under the kitchen sink or where the supply enters the house. Do not force a seized stop tap. Keep clear of water around electrical equipment, and turn off the electricity at the consumer unit only if you can reach it safely and it is dry.
A leak outside your property or in the street: contact your water supplier. Its number is on your water bill.
After the first action
- Photograph the damage for your records and insurer, but do not delay stopping the damage to do it.
- Call your home insurer's claims line before arranging major repairs.
- Use a registered electrician for electrical faults and a Gas Safe registered engineer for gas appliances.
- Stop using sinks, toilets and showers if drains are backing up.
- Cracks that appear suddenly, widen, or stop doors and windows closing need a structural engineer or surveyor to look at them.
This page gives general first actions and publicly listed UK emergency numbers, checked September 2026. It is not a substitute for advice from the emergency services or your supplier.