As a landlord, you are legally obligated to ensure that each of your properties will be a completely safe living environment for your tenants. To prove that you’re adhering to health and safety regulations, you’ll need to provide the following certificates for the tenancy to commence. Give your tenants the best living conditions possible with this comprehensive guide.
Gas safety certificate
It is a legal requirement that all landlords arrange an annual gas safety inspection – including the
Electrical safety certificat
Electrical hazards can lead to severe injuries, alongside causing irreparable damage to a property – with this in mind, an Electrical Safety Certificate is required to prove that the living environment is safe. From exposed wires to broken appliances, various factors could stimulate electric shock and arc flash – both of which can be fatal. Therefore, all electrical equipment inside the property must undergo annual testing to ensure safe usage.
Energy performance certificate
No tenant wants to be sat in their living room battling against sub zero temperature, suffering the consequences of a draughty home. To combat this, the Energy Performance Certificate was created. Buildings are rated from A (very efficient) to G (inefficient), and it’ll also tell you how costly heating and lighting will be, alongside how high carbon dioxide emissions are likely to be. An EPC will be valid for 10 years after being issued.
As of April 2018, the minimum EPC ‘pass’ grade was raised from G to E – making properties falling below this unrentable by law. However, the government has proposed a mandatory EPC C by 2025 – so if there’s any time to start making sure your properties are as energy efficient as possible, it’s now.
Additional property requirements
Deposit protection
Being another vital piece of documentation, landlords are legally obligated to place a tenant’s security deposit into a government-recognised tenancy deposit scheme (TDP) if a payment has been made directly. Tenants must then be provided with the TDP’s contact details, additional information on how their deposit is being kept, how they can go about getting the deposit back, alongside being made aware of the terms that could lead to a landlord making a claim against the deposit.
Legionella assessment
Landlords must also be cautious of the deadly legionella bacteria, which breeds in air condition systems. Therefore, you will be legally required to ensure that a risk assessment is performed – adhering to the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH) – by a trained professional. Any identified hazards must be dealt with immediately to protect the wellbeing of your tenants.
Fire safety
Ensuring a property’s protection against the risk of fire is another crucial aspect of a building being deemed safe to rent. It is essential that fire doors are fitted where needed, that there are clear fire escape routes in the building, and that a smoke and carbon monoxide detector have been installed on each floor. Furthermore, furniture inside the property must be fire safe – as proved by test labels – and fire extinguishers must be available to tenants.
If you want to enhance the safety of your property, get in touch with a member of our team today. Being experts in fire protection, we can ensure that you’re equipped with the most appropriate fire safety products – from insulated fire shutters to steel hinged fire doors – to keep your tenants happy.
