PROPERTY DISPUTES
HOUSING LAW SOLICITORS
Our Housing Law Solicitors believe that having a safe and secure home is a fundamental basic right which, if threatened, can negatively impact on all other aspects of a person’s life, such as their health, relationships, education and livelihood.
We can help you with:
- Disrepair: your Landlord may be in breach of their legal obligations to repair your home,
- Defendant possession proceedings: Defending all types of possession proceedings for private and social housing tenancies.
HOUSING DISREPAIR
Landlords are accountable and make sure that their properties are secure, safe and not in disrepair. This is the case whether or not they’re private, council/local authorities or housing associations. However, claims against landlords can be made when the landlords are not as responsible, which results in their tenants living in conditions that are dangerous.
The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act came into force in 2019 to ensure that rented homes are fit for human habitation. The Act has given greater power to tenants, allowing them to take action against negligent or irresponsible landlords.
According to the Government’s English Housing Survey for 2021 to 2022, there are around 4.4 million privately rented houses and 4 million socially rented houses in England. Around 17% of rented households fail to satisfy the Decent Homes Standard. This is the standard for public housing set by the Government. In addition, nearly 8% of rented properties suffer from damp and mould growth. Recently the Housing Ombudsman has seen complaints against landlords rise 27% year on year.
WHAT IS HOUSING DISREPAIR?
Disrepair includes circumstances where your landlord has failed to maintain the structure and exterior of the property. It also includes anything that affects the supply of basic utilities. Examples of housing disrepair may include:
unsafe plug sockets and electrical appliances
Poor ventilation
Unstable building
Subsidence
Cracking
Leaks
Drafts
Damp/mould issues
Infestation
Drainage and sanitation issues
Drainage and sanitation issues
Electrical hazards
unusable toilets, basins and sinks
You may be entitled to financial compensation; it will only be because the problems you have experienced have not been resolved for some time and have resulted in you or members of your family suffering.
When making a claim against a landlord bear in mind that if you are moving out of your property, or your landlord has fixed the problem, you can no longer make a housing disrepair claim.
CAN I CLAIM FOR HOUSING DISREPAIR?
As a tenant, you have a legal right to live in a home that is safe and free from any issues of disrepair that could cause you or your family harm.
The landlord’s obligations are set out under several pieces of legislation, namely, the Landlord and Tenant Act (LTA) 1985, which applies to tenancies entered into after 1961. Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act (LTA) 1985 states a landlord should:
keep in repair the structure and exterior of the dwelling-house (including drains, gutters and external pipes)
keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for the supply of water, gas and electricity and for sanitation
keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for space heating and heating water
If the above describes your experience, you could be eligible to claim. Don’t wait, if your landlord fixes the problem, or you hand in your notice, then we can’t help you get compensation.