Repairs: getting them done

As part of Generation Rent’s  Renter’s Rights Awareness week I spoke to renters about their rights to get their landlord to do repairs to their rented property. You can watch the full video here. Triza Handa, enforcement manager at the London Borough of Brent, spoke about council’s obligations to make landlords do repairs, and how the council can help tenants.

Tenants’ rights to have repairs done are spread out across various legal sources:

1. The tenancy agreement. This is where you should look first for your rights. Firstly because whether you are a tenant or not will dictate the rights you have. Secondly because some legislation on repairs works by implying terms into tenancy agreements. Finally because your tenancy agreement may contain additional rights that the legislation does not give you.

2. S11 (1)(a) of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 implies an obligation into tenancy agreements that your landlord will repair the structure and exterior of the property.

3. S11(1)(b) of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 implies an obligation into tenancy agreements that the landlord will keep the installations for water, gas, electricity, sanitation, heating and hot water be in proper working order.

4. The Fitness for Human Habitation Act 2018 requires that a property be fit for human habitation throughout the tenancy.

Watch the video for more detail on these rights and how they can work in practice.

These are some of the main rights that tenants have against their landlord, to directly force their landlords to carry out repairs. The council also has a duty to assist tenants when their homes are in a bad condition, by serving notices on landlords. The council also has the power to prosecute landlords them if they fail to comply with the notices.

If you have a repairs issue that is longstanding, serious, or that many of your neighbours all want to claim for together then contact Anthony Gold on 020 7940 4000.