What Does “Fit For Human Habitation” Mean In Practice?

Operations Director James Quy outlines some of the key factors demanding increased focus and action from landlords since the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 came into force.

According to a recent Inside Housing report, social housing providers are seeing a significant rise in housing condition claims since the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 came into force. The act is all about enforcement. Legal obligations on landlords for maintenance and the condition of homes already existed. The act gives tenants more power to compel landlords to take action when homes fall below acceptable standards.

The act adds three new sections into the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985: sections, 9A, 9B and 9C. There is now an “implied covenant” within the lease agreement, whether or not there are explicit clauses relating to maintenance and repair.

Tenants have the right to bring a claim directly against a landlord using the implied covenant rather than having to lodge a complaint with their local authority.

The definition of ‘fit for human habitation’ is based on section 10 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 and the Housing Health and Safety (England) Regulations 2005.

Tenants can make a claim for repairs and/or compensation if the building has been neglected, is in a bad condition or unstable. Other factors include if there is a persistent and serious problem with damp, the layout is unsafe or there is insufficient natural light or ventilation.  If the supply of hot and cold water is erratic, lavatories and drains are not functioning properly, or kitchen facilities are inadequate to prepare and cook food or wash up can also instigate a claim.

The Housing Act 2004 definition of a hazard is also relevant to the safety of an actual occupier of a dwelling whether the deficiency arises because of the construction of any building, an absence of maintenance or repair, or otherwise. The regulations themselves provide an extended and more technical list of what would constitute a hazard and there are four classes of hazard ranging from Class IV (moderate harm is reasonably foreseeable) up to Class I where extreme harm is reasonably foreseeable.

One of the weaknesses social housing providers could have in avoiding or contesting housing condition claims is incomplete or fragmented compliance data. Interrogating records and inspecting properties to evaluate and respond whether a claim is justified could end up costing more than the claim itself.

Now would be a good time to investigate solutions that can extract key compliance data from multiple data streams and present it in a coherent picture you can trust.

For more information, please contact Head of Compliance Alex McLean ([email protected]) visit our resource centre or browse our case studies.