The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018, which came into force on 20 March 2019, applied to new tenancies only. From 20 March 2020 it was extended to all private and social periodic tenancies that existed before 20 March 2019.
The Act did not actually introduce any new obligations for landlords; instead it requires landlords to ensure that they are meeting their existing responsibilities with regards to property standards and safety. Note that this Act extends to England and Wales but its practical changes are only for England. Wales has had its own fitness consultation.
So, why do we need this Act? What does it do? And what do you, as a landlord, need to know about it to ensure that you are compliant?
We all know that the number of people living in rented homes is rising rapidly – a fifth of the UK population now lives in privately rented accommodation; double the number who were dependent on the private rented sector (PRS) ten years ago. The types of households in the sector has also evolved over the years, with a record number of families now renting as home ownership declines.
With more and more people reliant on the PRS, the Government is taking steps to ensure that all rented accommodation is fit for human habitation and to strengthen tenants’ means of redress against the minority of landlords who do not fulfil their legal obligations to keep their properties safe.
This issue gained greater political momentum in the wake of the tragic fire at Grenfell Tower, where tenants had complained about safety conditions but their calls fell on deaf ears.
Under this Act, the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 is amended to require all landlords (private and social) to ensure that their properties, including any common parts of the building, are fit for human habitation at the beginning of the tenancy and throughout.
The Act also provides an additional means for tenants to seek redress and take direct legal action by giving them the power to hold their landlord to account without having to rely on their local authority to do so. In empowering tenants to take direct action against landlords who fail to adequately maintain their property, the Government hopes to level the playing field for the vast majority of good landlords, by ensuring that they are not undercut by those who flout their responsibilities.
The Government, supported by organisations such as Shelter and the National Residential Landlord Association (NRLA), hope that the Act will not only help tenants directly but will also have a positive impact on raising conditions more generally by educating landlords.
The vast majority of landlords are already fulfilling their duties and will be unaffected by the Act as it does not introduce new standards or additional regulation. It simply gives tenants the ability to enforce existing standards that landlords are expected to meet.
In determining whether a rented dwelling is ‘unfit’, the Act incorporates the 29 hazards enshrined in the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) and adds them to the nine serious defects in any of the following:
Plus:
It is for the courts to decide whether the dwelling is fit for human habitation. A HHSRS assessment is not necessary and the court may also make a decision of unfitness without expert advice. For example, if there were no plumbed sanitary conveniences in the property an expert opinion would not be necessary as the property would evidently be unfit.
The Act covers all tenancies less than seven years in length in both the private and social rented sectors. When it was implemented in March 2019, the Act applied only to new tenancies, including renewals. From 20 March 2020, it applies to all private and social periodic tenancies that existed before 20 March 2019.
There are some exceptions, for example the landlord will not be required to remedy unfitness when the problem is caused by tenant behaviour or ‘acts of God’ and the Act does not cover people who have ‘licences to occupy’ instead of tenancy agreements, such as lodgers or property guardians.
Once a landlord has been made aware of a hazard, they should rectify any damages they are responsible for as soon as possible. If a landlord is aware of a hazard but not attempting to address it, the tenant would be able to take their landlord to court.
It is particularly important for landlords to note that if a tenant tells you about a problem that is in a common part of a building, you are strongly advised to bring it to the freeholder’s attention as soon as possible. Following the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire, the Act includes a clause which extends its provision to cover common areas of a building. Failure to ensure that a property is fit for human habitation may result in either compulsory improvement to the condition of the property or compensation to the tenant, or both.
So long as you take steps to maintain your property and comply with current legislation, most landlords will be unaffected by the new Act. If your property is suffering from serious disrepair issues, you should of course resolve them irrespective of any new legislation.
However, landlord associations caution that private landlords responsible for regulated tenancies where repair and modernisation may have been limited by a sitting tenant need to be aware of the Act’s provisions. Of course, as is the case with any new legislation, only time will reveal exactly how defective a home needs to be to be considered uninhabitable in any one or more areas. This will be at the discretion of a judge. But one thing is certain – failure to maintain your property and carry out repairs on time could land you in court.
For more information refer to the Government’s guidance on the Homes (Fitness for human habitation) Act 2018.
