Pailthorpe Property Services Ltd.

There is much legislation, legal and regulatory requirements that are both Tenants and Landlords need to be aware of. We will not manage any property that doesn’t meet our minimum standards and that do not satisfy the legislation and regulations as listed in this section. As a tenant you can be assured that property is safe and suitable for habitation.

As members of the Eastern & North West Landlords Association, we adhere to their codes of practice and levels of services

Tenancy deposit Scheme

The Tenancy Deposit Scheme comes into force on the 6th April 2007. If you have not protected a tenant’s deposit you will be ordered to repay three times the amount to the tenant so find out how you can protect deposits and resolve disputes.

Why Protect Deposits

Deposits are protected to ensure:

1. tenants get all or part of their deposit back, when they are entitled to it
2. any disputes between tenants and landlords or agents will be easier to resolve
3. tenants are encouraged to look after the property they are renting

Letting a Property from the 6th April 2007

From 6 April 2007, when a landlord or letting agent takes a deposit from a tenant, the deposit must be protected in a government-authorised tenancy deposit scheme.

This new rule applies if the tenancy is an assured shorthold tenancy.

1. More on private rent and assured shorthold tenancies (home and community section)
2. Regulated Tenancies
3. Tenancy Deposit Protection - Frequently asked questions (opens new window)

Moving in

At the beginning of a new tenancy agreement, the tenant pays their deposit to their landlord or agent as usual. The landlord or agent must then ensure it is protected.

Landlords and agents have a choice of three schemes providers, offering two types of scheme to protect the deposit.

Custodial schemes

Money is held by the scheme until it is time for it to be repaid at the end of the tenancy. The custodial scheme is free to use. The landlord simply puts the deposit into the scheme at the beginning of the tenancy. There is one custodial scheme provider.

Insurance-based schemes

Under the insurance schemes the landlord keeps the deposit, and pays the insurance scheme to insure against the landlord failing to repay the tenant any money due to him. There is a choice of two insurance-based schemes.

1. Find out more about the schemes
2. Find out more about the scheme providers

Protecting the deposit

Within 14 days of taking the deposit, you must provide your tenant with details of how the deposit is being protected including:

1. the contact details of tenancy deposit scheme
2. the contact details of the landlord
3. how to apply for the release of the deposit
4. information explaining the purpose of the deposit
5. what to do if there is a dispute about the deposit

Tenants have a responsibility to return the property in the same condition they took it on.

Moving Out

At the end of tenancy the condition and contents of the property should be checked against the agreement made at the start of the tenancy. The landlord or agent then agrees with the tenant how much of the deposit will be returned to them.

Within 10 days the agreed amount of the deposit will be returned to the tenant.

Resolving Disputes

If no agreement can be reached about how much of the deposit should be returned, there will be a free service to help resolve disputes offered by the scheme which is protecting the deposit.

Fire and safety regulations

The Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 (as amended in 1989 and 1993) came into effect on 31 December 1996, setting levels of fire resistance for domestic upholstered furniture, furnishings and other products containing upholstery.

It is an offence to supply certain furniture in the course of business unless it complies with the regulations (all furniture purchased since 1990 should comply - if it does, it will have had a safety label attached to it at the point of sale). The exceptions to the legislation are:

1. Any furniture made or re-upholstered before 1950
2. Any furniture in a property which the landlord regards as his home and which is let 'on a one-off short-term basis (whilst, for example, he is temporarily working away from home). On the other hand, a much longer let or series of lets where the landlord views the property's primary purpose as a source of income, rather than his residence, is likely to be considered a business activity' (DTI guide, page 5) and therefore the furniture must comply

Items covered by the regulations are:

1. Furniture intended for private use in a dwelling, including children's furniture
2. Beds, headboards of beds, mattresses (of any size), pillows
3. Sofa beds, futons and any other convertibles
4. Nursery furniture
5. Garden furniture which is suitable for use indoors
6. Loose and stretch covers for furniture
7. Scatter cushions and seat pads.

Exempted items are:

1. Sleeping bags, bedclothes (including duvets)
2. Loose covers for mattresses
3. Pillowcases
4. Curtains
5. Carpets

Smoke Alarms

All properties built since June 1992 are required to have smoke alarms fitted on every floor. Although it's not a requirement for older properties, we recommend that smoke alarms are fitted in all properties.

Gas safety certificates

All appliances in properties let by Pailthorpe's Property Services must be checked for safety before a tenancy begins and must be rechecked annually on the anniversary of the previous inspection.

The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1994 and the amendment to the regulations in 1996 place the responsibility on residential landlords to make sure all gas appliances (boilers, cookers and gas fires) are maintained in good order and checked for safety every 12 months by an engineer with a current CORGI licence. Apart from the obvious safety implications there are also criminal penalties for landlords who do not comply. Landlords are now obliged to give their tenants a copy of this safety check report within 28 days of it being carried out. The regulations also state that you must retain the safety check report for a period of 2 years.

Important points to remember or action.

1. Ensure that all instruction booklets are available at the property for all gas appliances
2. Avoid buying or installing second-hand gas appliances into rented properties
3. Ensure that all gas appliances are checked as soon as possible before letting
4. Make sure that inspections are made on all gas appliances annually and maintenance is carried out regularly

Where there is not a gas appliance in any room occupied by a tenant but there is elsewhere on the premises a copy of the gas safety certificate can be displayed in a prominent position in the premises.

Any even if there are no gas appliances if your property has a gas supply; it must be checked.

Not only gas...

Did you know that faulty or incorrectly used appliances powered by solid fuels such as coal, smokeless fuels, oil and wood can also emit dangerous levels of CO fumes, if not properly maintained?

Ensure the chimneys and flues have been swept every year and kept clear - even if you burn smokeless fuel.

Ensure that ash from a solid fuel appliance has been regularly emptied as the fire may not burn properly and this may also damage the appliance.

Chimneys which have not been in use for a prolonged period of time should always be swept before a fire is lit.

Electrical testing

The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994

The Landlord is responsible for making sure all electrical appliances are safe for use. To comply with the above regulations, all electrical installations in the property need to be regularly checked and serviced. Electrical items that have a flex and plug or fuse need to have a Portable Appliance Test (PAT) carried out before your new tenant moves in and then every year whilst your property is tenanted.

Your properties fixed electrical wiring needs to be checked before you first let your house and your tenant moves in. It is then recommended a check of the fixed wiring be carried out every four or five years. This is not mandatory and has not yet become a law, like the Gas Safety Certificate however we believe it's only a matter of time and you may now be able to spread the cost of any necessary work by organising a fixed wiring check before you have to.

Please let us know if you'd like a fixed wiring test conducted at your property.