DIY Legionella Risk Assessment Reports for Just £9

Hi Graham,

You can view a report at the website under retrieve report. You can also see feedback from users.

Reply to the comment left by "Allan Mazey" at "07/10/2015 - 17:04":

Hi Allan,
I am pragmatic and logical. My point is. I accept the risk of LD exists, but the incidents and consequences in the UK are so low that they represent a risk that is so low it doesn’t in reality need any consideration. That is a fact. It might be more logical to do a risk assessment for lose floor coverings every year. A carpet on the stairs could come lose over a period of time and a Tenant trip and fall. I am sure it happens and I am 100% sure it happens much more often than tenants catching LD, so the risk is greater, yet we don’t have to do Risk Assessment, or yearly inspection for trip hazards.

It is law that we have to do LD assessments, that doesn’t make them, in themselves right or reasonable. They are neither. I believe that all rental property’s electrics should be protected by RCD’s to prevent fire and electrocution and that they should be tested every year. These are real high risk dangers for families who tend to overload sockets.
Apart from that. I said all I am going to about this. Take Care. Have Fun G

IMPORTANT.....

SEE:- http://www.hse.gov.uk/myth/myth-busting/2015/case357-consultants-letting-agents-exposure-to-legionella.htm

Consultants and agents are doing their usual trick of trying to make landlords believe this is a big problem so they can create another cash stream. The HSE clearly state that landlords are being misled in the majority of cases and let's face it, if you have a combi-boiler it is a sealed unit and no mist or stale water exists. Basic hygene is all that's needed in my opinion as well as ensuring the tenants are aware of the risks of failing to clean the shower and tap exits - hell, it is even a possible way of getting tenants to do some occasional de-scaling and, heaven forbid.... some CLEANING! My apologies to any tenant reading this for using the big "C" word.

We have 25 flats. We have been renting them all for 40 years. In all that time there has never been any kind of 'problem' with any kind of disease in the water. No one has ever been ill from the water. It's just another money making scheme. You have to remember that somewhere there is a huge team of people that are paid to just come up with ideas to make more money, get more people employed into jobs to carry out these new initiatives and push the humble landlord (or whoever) out of their job so that a 'specialist' can take over the running of the properties (or whatever) thus making more money. (This is true, my Dad told me!)They don't like normal people to do these things, there's no money in it for them. Sadly, having an opinion that doesn't just bow down & accept these things gets shot down in flames. If they want an assessment then the forms etc should be provided free. It's shocking to be asked to pay!
There's no question, if it's the law, it must be done. But seriously....get a grip! There are much more important things for landlords to worry about!

r01,

this is exactly right, some agents are telling landlords they need a legionella testing certificate which is wrong.

What landlords must do is a legionella risk assessment which is what property118 have arranged with lraregister.co.uk at £9.

It is a legal requirement whether we like it or not.

Reply to the comment left by "Graham Chilvers" at "07/10/2015 - 13:40":

Hi Graham

Believe it or not, your "5 minute Google search" provided wrong stats! There were over 300 cases of LD in the uk in 2013 with 31 deaths. There was an outbreak in August in the midlands where a man died and several were taken ill. Put that against the average 45 deaths from CO2 poisoning a year and you can see the level of risk we are looking at.

Yes the risk is tiny. Yes the chances of a tenant catching it is tiny. Yes the chances of a disgruntled clued up tenant grassing you up to the HSE and you getting a fine upto £20,000 and/or 12 months in prison is tiny. But the risk is there and the law says you need one.

Unfortunately this type of statement throwing wrong stats out just ads to the confusion.

Fact is the law says you need one. Whether you agree with it or not is beside the point.

Yes you can do your own but I echo the previous persons point,; knowing what your results mean, how to put control systems into place, cutting corners, "oh it looks OK to me" scenario etc. Without putting a finer point on it, people die from this and the ones that don't have life changing injuries.

My advice is to pay somebody trained to do it, cover yourself legally and protect your tenants from death. Not a bad outcome for c£80.

Neil

Reply to the comment left by "Neil Radford" at "10/10/2015 - 09:33":

Absolutely correct Neil.
And the statistics unfortunately are the tip of the iceberg. Legionella is an infection caused by a bacterium that naturally lives in water and thrives in warm water. It’s no surprise then that the legionella bacteria can take root in warm, moist lungs to cause pneumonia. and the most at risk are the vunerable people in our society. (Older, Younger, Smokers, Immune suppressed systems etc. Think how many people have passed away in hospital over the years from pneumonia !.
It could be argued that some of the tenants in rented accommodation fit into the above category of people most at risk and that is why the health focus is now on water hygiene.
At the risk of repeating myself ;- the ra is only part of a water hygiene control system

As detailed in the APPROVED CODE OF PRACTICE (L8rev) the site is required to;

• Identify and assess sources of risk of legionellosis and scalding from hot water.
• Prepare a scheme for preventing or controlling the risk.
• Implement and manage precautions.
• Keep records (for at least 5 years) of the precautions implemented.

Sorry but a £9.00 self performed ra doesn't do the job for me. In reality taking into account a landlords time to perform the ra, the cost of circa £80.00 for a professional ra with a competent independant product at the end of it is more than competitive.
And you will sleep better at night.

the report provided at lraregister.co.uk is perfectly adequate for a domestic rental property.

As said previously, the government say the landlord can do this himself.

Some people may not like it but it is a fact. You only need to spend less than £10 and a few minutes of your time to cover your legal responsibilities.

Reply to the comment left by "Ralph Butters" at "10/10/2015 - 10:25":

Agree with you Ralph that you can do it yourself. But the "a few minutes of your time to cover yourself" kinda says it all. A decent RA takes a lot more than a few minutes and whereas you do need to cover yourself legally, the main element of it is to protect your tenants from a disease that can kill. Ticking the boxes to cover yourself and not take any required actions, smacks of "I'm alright Jack" sod the rest of you!

For me it boils down to if you are going to do a job, do it right. And generally if you pay peanuts you get monkeys!! In my opinion!

Hi Neil,

I said a few minutes becuase a lot of the iformation you need to give to the tenant is already in the template.

The 'few minutes' comment was for the gathering of the information required. This is because as the owner of the property you would already know a fair bit about the water system, i.e is it combi boiler, if there is a cold water tank or and deadlegs etc.

With a guide (which is provided) you would spend less time than somene who had never been in the property before.