Landlord Responsibilities: Property Safety
As a landlord, you must provide a safe and secure living space for your tenants. You must make sure the necessary checks are carried out and arrange a registered professional to work on any issues. Providing a safe space for your tenants should be at the top of your landlord responsibilities list as it keeps you protected too, but what is your safety responsibilities?
Gas Safety
Gas equipment can be dangerous if not correctly installed or maintained. So, you must make sure that any gas equipment retained within your property is safely installed and maintained by a Gas Safe registered engineer. You also need to be getting each appliance and flue safety checked by a registered engineer at least once a year. Ensure you give tenants a copy of the gas safety check record for a property before they move in or within 28 days of the check.
Electrical Safety
It comes as no shock that you should be keeping on top of electrical systems within your property. Electricity is the vein of any modern property, and it can be dangerous when not maintained. So, you must supply registered tradespersons to perform checks on all electrical appliances such as fridges and cookers, sockets, light fittings and any other electrical component of the property.
Fire safety
Pretty much anything can catch fire, so you need to follow these guidelines to protect your tenants and potentially prevent any fires from occurring on your property. Follow all standard fire safety regulations and implement a smoke alarm on each floor of your property and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a solid fuel-burning appliance such as a log burner.
I also suggest showing new tenants fire escape routes/points and advising them against blocking these. Any furniture you supply must consist of fire-safe materials; you can check this on any piece of new furniture by locating a fire-safe label/tag. If the property you’re renting out is on the larger side, I would also suggest providing fire extinguishers.
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