If a local authority officer inspects your property and finds that it is not up to standard, one option available to them, if you do not rectify the issue immediately, is to serve an improvement notice.
The improvement notice will set out the issues that need to be rectified and will also set a date by which any repair or other works should be completed.
If the work is not done by the relevant deadline, this is an offence (under s30 of the Housing Act 2004). The local authority can either prosecute or impose a civil financial penalty, although in most cases they are more likely to impose the penalty.
For offences committed on or after 1 May 2026, the maximum penalty is £40,000, and the government-recommended starting point is £25,000. So this is a serious issue.
So, say you have been served an improvement notice, failed to comply with the deadline, have had a Civil Penalty Notice served on you, and then completed the repair work.
Where does this leave you regarding the improvement notice and the civil penalty notice served on you?
The improvement notice
Section 16(1) of the Housing Act 2004 says:
The local housing authority must revoke an improvement notice if they are satisfied that the requirements of the notice have been complied with.
So that deals with the improvement notice. However, what about the civil penalty notice fine imposed?
For this, we need to consider a recent Court of Appeal decision in the case of Manaquel Company Ltd v London Borough of Lambeth [2026].
Manaquel Company Ltd v London Borough of Lambeth [2026]
Lambeth LBC served an improvement notice concerning category 1 and category 2 hazards at an estate containing 96 flats. The landlord appealed against the notice. By the time the appeal was heard, almost two years later, relevant works had been carried out.
The First-tier Tribunal identified a number of problems with the notice and Lambeth’s evidence and quashed the notice. However, when dealing with the effect of the later works, the parties and the Tribunal proceeded on the basis that the condition of the premises should be assessed at the date of the hearing.
The Court of Appeal confirmed that this was the wrong approach. The question was whether the local authority was wrong to serve the notice it did at the time it did.
Evidence obtained later can be considered if it helps establish what the position actually was when the notice was served. However, repairs or other changes occurring afterwards cannot retrospectively make a properly served notice invalid.
What does this mean for civil penalties?
Manaquel did not concern a civil penalty. However, a similar distinction between earlier liability and subsequent events applies under section 30 of the Housing Act 2004.
Basically, if an improvement notice has not been complied with by the applicable deadline, the section 30 offence will have been committed. Unless perhaps the person on whom the notice was served had a reasonable excuse.
Completing the work afterwards does not retrospectively amount to compliance with the original deadline. So it does not, by itself, erase an offence already committed.
Mind you, it is still important. It will
- bring the outstanding non-compliance to an end,
- entitle the landlord to seek revocation of the notice, and
- may be relevant to the authority’s enforcement decision and the amount of any financial penalty.
The government guidance specifically identifies how quickly the non-compliance was remedied as a potentially mitigating factor.
And finally
Advice for landlords on receipt of an improvement notice:
If at all possible, you should get the works done by the date given in the notice. Then notify the Council and ask for the improvement notice to be revoked under s16(1).
If for any reason this is not possible, contact the Local Authority immediately, explain why it is not possible, and ask the authority to formally vary the improvement notice to extend the time allowed. This is permitted under s16(4) of the Housing Act 2004.
However, do not assume that this has been done until you have received written confirmation of the variation. Chase the Local Authority if they appear to be ignoring you, while making all efforts to get the works done as soon as possible. Keep records of all steps taken.
Important: Unless and until the notice is varied, you should work on the basis that its original requirements and deadlines remain in force.
If a penalty is subsequently imposed
Take advice immediately.
Depending on the circumstances, it may be possible to dispute
- whether the improvement notice was validly served and had become operative,
- whether its requirements had been complied with by the applicable deadline,
- whether the authority can prove the offence beyond reasonable doubt, or
- whether you had a reasonable excuse for failing to comply.
The amount of the penalty can also be challenged. Relevant matters may include
- the seriousness and duration of the non-compliance,
- the risk of harm,
- your culpability, and
- how quickly you completed the outstanding work.
Important: Although carrying out the required works after the deadline will allow you to ask the local authority to revoke the improvement notice under section 16(1), it does not, by itself, extinguish liability for an earlier failure to comply within the deadline set by the notice.
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