Health and Safety for Landlords and Tenants
Tenant and landlord responsibilities to ensure health and safety
Landlords
It is your responsibility as a landlord to ensure that the properties which you rent out are safe and free from anything which may be hazardous to your tenant's health. You should make sure that all the gas and electric equipment in your properties is functioning safely and make sure that your property adheres to fire regulations.
Your local council may inspect your property under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) to ensure that it is up to standards. If your property is found to have any problems, it will be up to you to ensure that they are put right. You can reduce the chance of getting inspected by carrying out your own checks and ensuring that repairs are carried out quickly and to a high standard. If you let your property through your local authority, you will not be responsible for carrying out health and safety checks on the property.
Tenants
Tenants have a responsibility to look after the property to ensure that they do not cause any damage to it. They should take steps to ensure that damage is avoided, for example by clearing out drains to ensure that they don’t overflow. Tenants will be responsible for any damage caused by their friends or family. Tenants should only carry out major repairs to the property if their tenancy agreement allows them to.
Share your experiences
Please note: The views expressed in community areas of this site do not necessarily reflect or represent the views of Law on the Web, its owners, its staff or contributors.
There are different forms of tenancy contract that can be created between a tenant and a landlord depending on the circumstance of the rental. The rights that the landlord and tenant have will be detailed in the tenancy agreement.
Find out more
An assured shorthold tenancy is regarded as one of the most common forms of tenancy agreement in the UK and was first introduced by the 1988 Housing Act.
Find out more
A landlord is an individual who rents out a property in some way, shape or form that they own. Landlords are subject to different landlord laws, rules and regulations regarding their actions and the actions of their tenants.
Find out more