Landlord and Tenant – Housing Conditions

A Landlord’s obligation to keep a property in a state of repair, stems from various legislation; one such piece of legislation is Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. This sets out a Landlord’s responsibility to keep the structure and exterior as well as the boilers, pipes and electrics in safe working order. The legislation applies to both private and social landlords.

Some examples of issues which are covered by Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act, which the landlord is responsible for, are:

• The exterior and/or structure of the property
• Sinks, baths, toilets, pipes and drains
• Heating and hot water
• Chimneys and ventilation
• Gas appliances
• Electrical wiring
• Common parts of a building, such as entrance halls, communal stairways and shared kitchens

Furthermore, landlords also have a legal responsiblity to:

• Have a gas safety check carried out every 12 months by a Gas Safe registered engineer
• Ensure any furniture provided meets the required safety standards
• Ensure any electrical equipment provided meet the required safety standards
• Ensure a smoke alarm is installed on each floor of the property and that carbon monoxide detectors are present in any room with a coal fire or wood-burning stove

New legislation in the form of The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 came into force on 20 March 2019. This places an obligation on the landlord to keep the Property safe, and free from things that could cause the tenant or someone else in the household serious harm.

Having said this however, the obligation is not on the landlord alone, tenants have responsibilities to not cause damage to the property through reckless or illegal acts. Therefore, if property issues are caused by the tenant’s behaviour, specifically their reckless or illegal behaviour, then the onus is not automatically on the landlord to fix these issues.

If a landlord doesn’t comply with their obligations to keep the Property in a state of repair, a tenant may contact their local council who may then issue a hazard notice, allowing the landlord a period of time to get the works done. If the landlord still fails to comply with the hazard notice, the council may issue an improvement or enforcement notice to ensure that these works are completed. During this time, no Section 21 eviction notice may be served on the tenant until works have been completed and the council notice revoked.

In addition to this, a tenant may also seek legal advice in relation to bringing a housing disrepair claim. The tenant can look to bring such a claim under the legislation referenced above and may be entitled to compensation at a proportion of the rent paid during the period whilst the property remained in a state of disrepair.

It is therefore incredibly important for landlords or agents to investigate any reports by tenants quickly and have good systems and processes for keeping records of any complaints and when they were remedied.

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