Environmental Health Officers [EHOs] are concerned with protecting the environment that we all live in. Businesses will often come across them taking measures to maintain air quality, food safety and ensure safe hazardous waste disposal. However Landlords also need to be aware of the work of EHOs who are more and more frequently called upon to exercise their powers to deal with substandard housing.

Assessment

In England, a Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) is used to assess houses to ensure that they have no serious hazards. The Local Council will rely on this inspection report to take action against Landlords whose properties are hazardous and ensure that they are made safe.

The assessment will take a number of different factors into account:

  • Damp and mould
  • Crumbling plaster and wood rot
  • Faulty or exposed electrics
  • Infestations
  • Fire safety

What steps can EHO take if a property fails inspection?

  • They can issue a Hazard Warning Notice to formally tell the Landlord there is a problem
  • They can issue an Improvement Notice ordering the Landlord to carry out specific repairs within a specified period of time
  • They can order closure of all or part of a building
  • They can carry out emergency repairs themselves and reclaim the cost from the Landlord

What are common items listed within an improvement notice?

My experience of Improvement Notices has shown a number of recurring issues such as:

  • Windows that won't close properly
  • Damp / mouldy walls
  • Missing or broken staircases
  • Vermin infestations
  • Missing floorboards

If your Property has any of the above issues, it is advisable to get them fixed as soon as possible, as EHO are likely to identify them as serious hazards. Failure to carry out repairs listed within an Improvement Notice will lead to prosecution of the Landlord and a hefty fine.

Case Study

I am currently acting for a Landlord who has a Property with numerous maintenance issues. Unfortunately he ignored all correspondence from EHO and was prosecuted and fined. Hopefully the below real life case will show the process from first Tenant complaint to fine, and act as a precautionary tale to any readers!

The process in a recent 'real-life' case I've worked on:

11/10/13 - First complaint from Tenant about outstanding maintenance including a badly leaking radiator, a rat infestation and a bedroom window that wouldn't close
18/10/13 - Further complaint from Tenant about outstanding maintenance including no heating or hot water as well as other items still outstanding

21/10/13 - Further complaint from Tenant about outstanding maintenance
24/10/13 - Further complaint from Tenant about outstanding maintenance
29/10/13 - Further complaint from Tenant about outstanding maintenance

04/11/13 - Complaint to EHO
25/11/3 - EHO wrote to the Landlord to advise that they would be inspecting the Property and to invite the Landlord to attend the inspection
02/12/13 - EHO inspected the Property. Numerous hazards were identified
04/12/13 - EHO served the Landlord with an Improvement Notice. The Landlord had 30 days to carry out the repairs
10/01/14 - EHO re-inspected the property and found that no repairs had been carried out. 14/01/14 - EHO again wrote to the Landlord to state that repairs must be carried out and provide an extended deadline. 11/02/14 - EHO re-inspected the property and found that no repairs had been carried out still
18/02/14 - Court proceedings issued

28/04/14 - Landlord fined £1500 and still has to carry out the repairs. Landlord subsequently complained that he has no money to pay the fine. EHO not interested and said still have to pay. In meantime Tenants instructing contractors to carry out repairs themselves and withholding cost from rent

What the landlord did wrong

As you can see, the Landlord was given a number of chances to carry out the repairs both before and after EHO became involved. Had the Landlord carried out some of the repairs and contacted EHO during the inspection process, he would likely have been given a further extension to carry out repairs. I cannot stress enough how important it is to work with EHO - if you give them a timescale for when repairs will be carried out, as long as these are reasonable, you will usually be given the time requested.

Note: The fine may also be higher, but this particular Landlord did genuinely have a low income.

The other reason why it is important to carry out repairs swiftly is that Tenants can suffer injury or illness if you do not keep up to maintenance. This Landlord is now being sued by one of his Tenants because the damp and cold (due to the broken window) seriously aggravated their asthma leading to respiratory difficulties. The Landlord will almost certainly be found liable. The Landlord is therefore now also going to have to pay their hefty Professional Indemnity Insurance policy excess, and the position could have been even worse if they had not had insurance!