Landlords of residential property should be aware of Health and Safety Legislation. Amendments to the Housing Act 2004 introduced the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (England) Regulation 2005 which may have huge consequences for landlords of properties which are let on a variety of agreements including protected tenancies and service occupancies.
The legislation came into force on 6 April 2006 and put a responsibility on the landlord and property manager to comply. The regulations identify Category 1 and 2 hazards which may affect the health and safety of the occupier - such hazards may include excess cold in the property, damp/mould and exposure to noise.
In the event that a local authority deems a property to be affected by any of these hazards, a notice will be served on the landlord in the form of a Hazard Awareness Notice under section 28 or 29 of the Housing Act 2004 (dependent on the hazards in question). The notice states the hazards present and the remedial action required for reasonable habitation. The landlord must then agree a timescale with the council for the works to be carried out. In some cases the local authority may issue a Prohibition Order (under section 20 of the Act) on the landlord where they feel that a category 1 hazard is so severe that the property is deemed to be unfit for habitation by, for example, persons over the age of 60 years. The landlord has the right to appeal to a Residential Property Tribunal against the order within a period of 28 days.
Where notices have been served and landlords have complied there is an opportunity to rentalise the improvements carried out. However, this raises issues of affordability, particularly with regard to Rent Act tenancies where the landlord is able to apply instantly to the Rent Officer to increase the rent, and for service occupants including farm workers and gamekeepers.
For further information please contact Hannah Pike tel 01785 220044 or email hannah.pike@fishergerman.co.uk
