A significant number of Stockport landlords are placing themselves and their tenants in danger by not complying with required safety laws, a brand new survey has advised.
Nearly half of tenants dwelling in privately rented lodging with gas mains say they haven’t had their gas appliances checked within the last 12 months, in accordance with analysis by property administration platform Plentific.
That is despite gas safety checks being a legal requirement.
Landlords are obliged to have a gas safety inspection carried out on their property yearly, if their property is supplied by gas.
Housing associations and local authorities appear to be higher equipped to make sure these checks are carried out, with 82 per cent of social housing residents confirming an inspection was carried out inside the last yr.
Nearly a 3rd of private renters claim they don’t have a smoke alarm on every floor of their dwelling, while 56 per cent say they don’t have a carbon monoxide alarm put in.
In social housing, one in 5 declare to not have smoke alarms on every storey, with 44 per cent saying there isn’t any signal of a carbon monoxide alarm.
Landlords are required to install smoke alarms on every floor of a property.
At present, non-public landlords have to additionally present carbon monoxide detectors where there’s a solid fuel burning device such as a wood burner or coal fireplace, however there isn’t any obligation for social landlords to offer something.
Roughly 10.5million houses within the UK are rented; 5.5million to non-public tenants and 5million to social housing residents, in accordance with figures from the most recent UK housing overview.
‘Social landlords care deeply about ensuring their tenants’ houses are protected and cozy,’ mentioned Catherine Ryder, director of policy and research at the National Housing Federation, which represents housing associations.
‘Whereas our sector always strives to do better, this report’s own findings present that social landlords fare better than non-public landlords at providing smoke alarms and gas safety certificates.’
The results of not having an updated gas safety certificate may be severe for landlords.
‘If a property is lacking a gas safety certificate, they can be fined £6,000 per appliance or receive a 6 month prison term,’ mentioned Rik Smith, head of tenancy services at lettings software business Goodlord.
‘If a tenant dies consequently, the owner may be prosecuted for manslaughter.’
The survey additionally discovered 61 per cent of renters in non-public accommodation and 73 per cent in social housing had not seen their property’s Energy Performance Certificate.
EPC is a rating scheme which bands properties between A and G, with an A rating being probably the most environment friendly and G being the least environment friendly.
Properties require a minimum EPC score of E in order to be let, and landlords should present a duplicate of the EPC report back to the tenant.
‘Resident safety needs to be of paramount significance to landlords, and failing to adjust to legal requirements may put each residents and landlords in danger,’ mentioned Cem Savas, chief government at Plentific.
‘There are a variety of complexities involved and landlords must guarantee they understand the rules and different requirements of laws to make sure they don’t fall foul of the regulation.’
This article has been collated by Modern Heating Services, Commercial Heating Company in Manchester, who offer Certified Gas Safety Checks and Warm Air Heating Engineers.
