Health and Safety for Rented Accomodation
There are a myriad of different regulations, acts and rules that apply to lettings, and many have been introduced or changed only recently. It is important for landlords to keep up to date with them all.
Landlords are generally responsible for the maintenance and major repairs to a property. This includes repairs to the structure and exterior of the property, heating and hot water installations, basins, sinks, baths and other sanitary installations.
Landlord's Liability:
As a landlord you must ensure that all of your property is safe and in no way poses a danger to anyone entering the premises. You must ensure that all glass doors have safety glass fitted, that the garden poses no danger to anyone, i.e. an old iron fence may cut a child’s hand, the guttering may not be held up properly or the kitchen cupboard door that you have been meaning to fix may fall off it’s hinges and injure the tenanat or another party.
You have a duty of care in law to ensure that your property poses no danger to your tenant, a visitor or even someone trespassing on your property. Check your property thoroughly to ensure that there are no hidden dangers. What may be seen as an everyday inconvenience to you and something that you will get around to fixing one day can end up as major incident to someone else and cost you a fortune.
Housing standards
A property should be safe and healthy for occupiers, so responsibility should be taken to ensure that:
- the dwelling is capable of providing adequate heating, which ideally means controllable central heating and insulation, with eqipment and the fabric of the building in good repair
- electricity and gas supplies, and the sanitation (drains, basins, sinks, baths and WCs) are in working order
- there are no fall, trip, or hazards of any nature likely to cause injury
- there are no unrecorded asbestos hazards (all buildings built prior to 1995)
- water heating equipment is in working order
- the property is free from damp
If the property you let out does not satisfy these criteria and is a health risk a tenant may be able to take legal action against you.
Repairs booklet from the Department for Communities and Local Government (opens new window)
Landlords legal responsibilities and duties are formulated by law and so are subject to change through statute and case law. It is important for landlords to keep up-to-date and to review their systems and procedures in the light of any changes.
Ref: HSE website
What can you do to Prepare
If you are a landlord, you should consider whether there are any features in your property, or general disrepair, that could lead to an accident or illness. For example, if there is damp and mould, look at where it is in the house and consider whether, if a child or elderly person lived there, could it affect their health?
Or, if there are steep stairs, is there anything else you could do to make them safer, such as providing extra lighting or another handrail?
You should ensure that the property is fully insulated with loft and cavity wall insulation, and where possible replace draughty windows or draught-exclude them.
You should ensure that the heating system is efficient and economic to run. If not, tenants may not use it and that will affect the fabric of your building. It may also mean that the Council serves a notice requiring that an economic and efficient heating system be installed immediatly.
If you are a tenant, you should ensure that your landlord or managing agent know about any of your concerns to do with your property.
You should also make sure that as a tenant you reasonably look after the property you live in.
If you have any doubts, please contact your local Council’s Private Sector Housing Team.
Did you Know? There may be financial assistance available for improving the health and safety of your property. Please contact your Private Sector Housing Team at your local council for further details.
Priority Hazards
The following hazards are probably a priority in your area and you should give specific attention to them:
Damp and Mould growth – take all steps to ensure the prevention of condensation, penetrating damp and rising damp. Clean away mould spores.
Excess cold – provide an adequate, economic heating system
Entry by intruders – ensure that the dwelling is secure
Domestic hygiene, pests and refuse – ensure that the dwelling can be kept clean, that there are no pests and no access for pests into the building. Keeping the garden tidy to prevent rats and mice living in the garden, and ensure there is adequate refuse storage.
Food safety – ensure there is a clean and usable kitchen with adequate facilities for food storage, sufficient worktop space and hot and cold running water to a sink.
Personal hygiene, sanitation and drainage – you should ensure there are adequate bathrooms, wash hand basins and toilets in the dwelling and that they are clean. Ensure there is hot and cold water and that the drainage is working properly.
Falls associated with baths etc, falling on level surfaces, falls on stairs – ensure the property has as few tripping and falling hazards as possible. Where they are unavoidable such as stairs and steps, ensure that the surfaces and carpets are properly secured, there is good lighting, and there are handrails in place.
Fire – all properties must be protected from the effects of fire. You should ensure that there are smoke detectors, fire alarms, and safe protected routes out of the property. You should also take steps to prevent the spread of fire e.g. through the use of fire doors.