Renting out property is a serious business. As I said in the introductory section it is not just an investment – it is someone’s home.

As the provider of this, there are some pretty strict obligations on landlords, not just for keeping the property in repair. There are also

Landlord’s health and safety obligations

The law on this is rather scattered about so I will try and draw some of it together for you in this article. I will look first at the best-known health and safety obligation.

The gas regulations

These require all landlords of property where there are any gas installations, to have them checked annually by a gas installer registered with the Gas Safe Register, and to provide a certificate to the tenants (also annually) confirming that this has been done. And that any necessary work has been done.

The obligation to do this is on the landlord and it is not something you can pass on to the tenant. For example, in a clause in the tenancy agreement – if you do this it will be void.

The landlord also has to pay the cost of any necessary repair and maintenance work – unless the work is needed because of damage done by the tenant.

What happens if you fail to comply? Well, the tenant can report you to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), who may, if you ignore all requests, bring a prosecution against you.

The HSE have a very good web site with a lot of useful information on it, as does the Gas Safe Register. In addition, you can use the Gas Safe Register site to find or to check out a gas installer, to see if they are registered, plus they have a reminder service to get your appliances checked.

Gas safety is extremely important. People have died due to poorly maintained gas appliances.

Section 21 issues

Note that for tenancies in England which started or were renewed on or after 1 October 2015, you will not be able to serve a valid section 21 notice if you have not served a gas certificate on your tenants before they moved in (assuming there is gas in the property). 

If you  did actually have a gas safety certificate but just forgot to serve it, current case law indicates that you can serve it late.  However if you did not have a valid gas safety certificate at that time, this may prevent you from using section 21 at any time.

Electricity

Electrical Installation Condition Reports (EICR)

Up until June 2020 (and December 2022 in Wales) there was no obligation on landlords to have electricity checks carried out.  

However now landlords are obliged, under new regulations to have the electrical installations checked at least every 5 years by a qualified and competent person.  

This person must supply a certificate which must be provided to tenants and Local Authorities if they request it.  Applicants for properties must also be provided with the report.

You will find detailed guidance on the regulations in the government online guide here.

Other legal obligations

We have already discussed, in the last section, landlords’ obligations under the statutory repairing covenants.

There are a number of other regulations that relate to electricity and electrical appliances. For example, regulations relating to plugs and sockets, gas cooking appliances and the safety of electrical appliances generally.

To protect yourself, therefore, it is often a good idea to get PAT (portable appliance testing) certificates between lets,for any appliances which are not new. 

If this is done, then if complaints are made, it is evidence to prove that all appliances were in proper working order at the time the property was let.

Note also now that under building regulations, only properly qualified electricians can do electrical work. So, make sure you only use qualified people and keep careful records to show what has been done at the property and who did it.

Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Regulations

These came into force in England on 1 October 2015 and were amended on 1 October 2022.  Similar rules now apply in Wales.

Landlords must provide a smoke alarm on every floor where there is living accommodation and a carbon monoxide alarm in every room where there are solid fuel and fixed appliances such as gas boilers or fires. And also when new appliances such as gas boilers or fires are installed in any home.

The alarms must be tested on the first day of the tenancy by the landlord or his agent, after which the maintenance is down to the tenants (or as provided in the tenancy agreement).  Although landlords must replace faulty alarms once they have been notified.

As fire safety is important for your investment, many landlords will check the smoke alarms themselves when carrying out their regular property inspections.

Landlords also have obligations regarding fire safety generally.  You will find extensive guidance (not all of which is relevant for landlords) linked from here.

Furniture

Then there are the furniture regulations. These state that all soft furnishings must be complaint, fire retardant and carry the proper labels. This does not apply to furniture manufactured before 1950 or materials used just to cover them.

To protect yourself you should keep records of all receipts for furniture bought. Anything purchased new since about 1993 should be compliant.

Local Authorities and the Housing Health and Safety Rating System

Local Authorities have a statutory duty (under the Housing Act 2004) to try to enforce housing standards in their area. They do this via the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS).

If they suspect that a property is below standard – for example if they have received a complaint by a tenant, one of their Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) will go there and carry out an inspection.

Under the HHSRS procedure, the EHO will assess the property against 29 specific hazards. Each of these will be given a score and entered into a computer program which will calculate the results for the property.

If the assessment throws up a Category 1 hazard, then the Local Authority has a duty to take action. If it throws up a Category 2 hazard, then they have a power to take action but a discretion as to whether they actually do so or not.

The normal course of action is to serve an enforcement notice on the landlord ordering him to do specified works to bring the property up to standard.

If the landlord fails to comply with the notice, the Local Authority can do the work themselves and claim the cost back from the landlord. However, more usually, they will prosecute.

Note that the 29 hazards in the HHSRS are now also used to determine whether a property is ‘fit for human habitation’ as discussed in the last section.

And finally

This is just a brief summary of some of the most important health and safety issues landlords need to be aware of.  There are others which we have not discussed here, for example the need to do checks for legionella.