Legislation to improve the electrical safety standards for landlords of privately rented properties has changed. It is designed to improve tenant safety and will be another useful piece of legislation that councils can use to improve the quality of rented housing locally.
Previously only HMO properties were required to obtain an electrical safety inspection every 5 years. This new legislation supersedes previous requirements.
From 1 July 2020 it became mandatory for all private rental properties to have an electrical safety inspection before a new tenancy is issued. A qualified engineer will need to check every fixed electrical installation and provide a full report. Unless the report requires a shorter interval, inspections will need to be carried out every 5 years thereafter.
Later, in April 2021 the legislation will be extended. Five yearly electrical safety inspections will be required for all rental properties with existing tenancies.
The new legislation requires landlords to receive a copy of the electrical inspection report.
Landlords then need to:
A copy of the report must be given to each new tenant and any prospective tenant that asks, in writing, for a copy.
If the inspection identifies any faults, landlords are required to ensure that remedial works are completed by a qualified person with 28 days. Confirmation that the property is now compliant or that it needs further work is again, required in writing. This continues until the property is fully compliant.
If a rental property is not inspected, there are some hefty fines available. Financial penalties up to £30,000 can be imposed and that can be repeated for further breaches. If the tenant does not allow access to the property however, the landlord will not be held responsible for not carrying out any remedial work.
We are currently talking to our electrical team about the new regulations. We are preparing for the additional workload and working to compile a schedule of works. In due course we will inform our landlords and begin to carry out electrical inspections on their behalf.
You can read the draft legislation document at legislation.gov
If any of our landlords has any concerns or would like more information they should contact us on 01472 360178 or email info@newmillsproperties.com
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