And how tenants can enforce them
1. Section 11 of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985
This sets out the legal obligations landlords have towards tenants as regards keeping the property in repair. They can’t be excluded by landlords (for example by a clause in their tenancy agreement) unless the landlord has obtained a court order.
If the landlord fails to comply, tenants can go to the country court to get an injunction ordering their landlord to do the relevant works, and an order for financial compensation.
You can see section 11 here.
2. Part 1 of the Housing Act 2004
This sets out a procedure for Local Authority Environmental Health Officers to follow when inspecting a property for fitness.
If the inspection finds any ‘category one hazards’ they are obliged to take action against the landlord. Normally this will be serving an improvement order, which if the landlord fails to comply, can be enforced via the Magistrates Court.
You can see the Housing Act 2004 here.
3. The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998
These require all landlords renting properties with gas appliances to have them inspected annually by an installer registered with the Gas Safe Register and provide a certificate to the tenants. The regulations are enforced by the Health and Safety Executive, which is done via the Magistrates Courts.
You can see the regulations here and the HSE has a useful website here.
4. The Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988
These require furniture and furnishings in rented property to be fire retardant and carry the proper labels. There is an exception upholstery for furniture made before 1950. These regulations (as are several others relating to product safety) and regulated by Local Authority trading standards offices, who will enforce them if necessary via Magistrates Courts.
You can see the regulations here.
5. The Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006.
These only apply to Housing in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) but they will apply to ALL HMOs, not just those that need licensing. They are regulated by Local Authorities who can if necessary enforce them via the Magistrates Courts.
You can see the regulations here.
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As can be seen, all of these except number one, the statutory repairing covenants, fall within the criminal law (see my previous blog post for the difference between criminal and civil law). The main significance of this is that they do not give tenants special rights to go to court to enforce these standards – this is generally done by someone else.
If a tenant wants to bring a claim himself, this can only really be done under the section 11.
By the way, this is just my list – if you think there is another law which is more important than these, please leave a comment.
If you are a landlord, you may be interested in my Ten Top Tips on the legal aspects of preparing a property to rent.
Can you explain a bit more about how to obtain an injunction as mentioned re s.11? Would the tenant have had to follow the pre-action protocol first (even if the repair is urgent), and how straightforward is it in terms of the claim? Is the claimant exposed to costs if he fails to obtain an injunction?
I note that the limit for disrepair claims by a tenant against a landlord is £1,000 in the small claims track, which suggests that it might be possible to DIY a low value claim – ? – albeit the average layperson won’t know how to calculate damages.
I’m not the best person to explain about getting an injunction as I no longer do ‘proper’ litigation (only standard repossessions) and it is quite a few years since I was last at court.
However I am pretty sure that the pre action protocol http://www.justice.gov.uk/guidance/courts-and-tribunals/courts/procedure-rules/civil/contents/protocols/prot_hou.htm will need to be followed in all cases, although if the repairs are very urgent the court may be prepared to truncate the times a bit. It will depend on the facts of the case and its history.
Bearing in mind that the landlord is not liable at all under s11 until he has had notice of the disrepair.
What does anyone else think?
There are 3 forms needed for an injunction. An N1 which is the standard court form. Very basic, just has names and addresses of parties and why you are asking the court for.
An N16a form which is the injunction application form itself. Similar info to the N1 really and an N285 which is the general form of affidavit, effectively your witness statement.
You add any photos as evidence and specialist reports if you have them and pay the court fee which at the moment is £175 but obviously as the money claim rises so does the fee. Best to make 3 copies of everything as the court office fees for photocopying are ridiculous.
If you are on benefits you need a further form, an EX160a which allows you to waive the court fee but you do need some form of proof of your benefits dated within the last 28 days. They are very strict about that. If you don’t have that proof you can ask to sign a General Form Of Undertaking promising to produce the proof within the next 5 days. You usually have to ask for that last bit I find, they rarely offer it up as a solution. Alternatively you can pay up front but use the EX160a to claim it back later on.
You can have a hearing date set for it or in emergencies apply for what is known as an Ex Parte injunction- issued without the other party’s knowledge which you then have to serve on them. There will be a hearing date added to the injunction, usually a week or so into the future when the landlord gets to air their version of events