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Health and Safety,
and other Legal Requirements
The following requirements are the responsibility
of the owner (Landlord). Where we are managing
the property they are also our responsibility.
Therefore where we are managing we will
ensure compliance, any costs of which will
be the responsibility of the landlord.
Gas
Annual safety check: Under the Gas Safety
(Installation and Use) Regulations 1998
all gas appliances and flues in rented accommodation
must be checked for safety within 12 months
of being installed, and thereafter at least
every 12 months by a competent engineer
(e.g. a CORGI registered gas installer).
Maintenance: There is a duty to ensure that
all gas appliances, flues and associated
pipework are maintained in a safe condition
at all times.
Records: Full records must be kept for at
least 2 years of the inspections of each
appliance and flue, of any defects found
and of any remedial action taken.
Copies to tenants: A copy of the safety
certificate issued by the engineer must
be given to each new tenant before their
tenancy commences, or to each existing tenant
within 28 days of the check being carried
out.
Electrical
There are several regulations relating to
electrical installations, equipment and
appliance safety, and these affect landlords
and their agents in that they are 'supplying
in the course of business'. They include
the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations
1994, the Plugs and Sockets Regulations
1994, the 2005 Building Regulation - 'Part
P, and British Standard BS1363 relating
to plugs and sockets. Although with tenanted
property there is currently no legal requirement
for an electrical safety certificate (except
in the case of all HMOs) it is now widely
accepted in the letting industry that the
only safe way to ensure safety, and to avoid
the risk of being accused of neglecting
your 'duty of care', or even of manslaughter
is to arrange such an inspection and certificate.
Fire
The Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety)
Regulations 1988 (amended 1989 & 1993)
provide that specified items supplied in
the course of letting property must meet
minimum fire resistance standards. The regulations
apply to all upholstered furniture, beds,
headboards and mattresses, sofa-beds, futons
and other convertibles, nursery furniture,
garden furniture suitable for use in a dwelling,
scatter cushions, pillows and non-original
covers for furniture. They do not apply
to antique furniture or furniture made before
1950, bedcovers including duvets, loose
covers for mattresses, pillowcases, curtains,
carpets or sleeping bags. Items which comply
will have a suitable permanent label attached.
Non-compliant items must be removed before
a tenancy commences.
Smoke Alarms
All properties built since June 1992 must
have been fitted with mains powered smoke
detector alarms from new. Although there
is no legislation requiring smoke alarms
to be fitted in other ordinary tenanted
properties, it is generally considered that
the common law 'duty of care' means that
Landlords and their Agents could be liable
should a fire cause injury or damage in
a tenanted property where smoke alarms are
not fitted. We therefore strongly recommend
that the Landlord fit at least one alarm
on each floor (in the hall and landing areas).
Is your property a House in Multiple
Occupation (HMO)?
If your property is on 3 or more levels
and let to 5 or more tenants comprising
2 or more households (i.e. not all of the
same family) it will be subject to mandatory
licensing by your local authority. Whether
mandatory licensing as above applies or
not, if there are 3 or more tenants not
all related in any property, it is still
likely to be an HMO, and special Management
rules apply.
The Tenancy Deposit Scheme
From 6 April 2007, all deposits taken by
landlords and letting agents under Assured
Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs) in England and
Wales must be protected by a tenancy deposit
protection scheme. Landlords and letting
agents must not take a deposit unless it
is dealt with under a tenancy deposit scheme.
To avoid any disputes going to court, each
scheme will be supported by an alternative
dispute resolution service (ADR). Landlords
and letting agents will be able to choose
between two types of scheme; a single custodial
scheme and two insurance-based schemes.
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