MPs call for ‘Awaab’s Law’ to be extended to the PRS

Fixed deadlines mean nothing. This case showed how the social housing provider failed to adhere to this anyway and this was the outcome. It will happen time and time again.
The social ombudsman is useless. Fine - yep so what - all the HP's do is play the stats game and taking a hit where caught. At the end of the day do you really think the government is going to take over and run housing however bad a HP gets. Nope.

No problem having a fixed deadline just so long as the fix could involve eviction and selling up.

“The UK’s 12 million private tenants however are offered no such protection.”

totally wrong. Legislation AND enforcement procedures in place already.

Down to the tenant to report to Agent/ LL, Agent to tell LL, LL to assess the issue and IF is it proven to be a LL obligation, then they are to address this. If tenant not happy then they can go to the council EH and formally log with Council. Up to Council where it goes from there.

Hmmm!
In many cases mould is simply the fault of the tenant!
I live in a Victorian house and treat small patches as soon as they appear with mould remover, make sure windows are regularly opened very slightly, never dry washing on a radiator, use my kitchen extractor etc etc.
The point is, that mould is usually not an issue IF you make the effort!!!
Sadly, many tenants cant be bothered! Thats the bottom line!!
When i took possession of a house ( my formerhome) it had mouls in the bathroom...we lived there for 20
years and never had mould because we opened the bathroom window!!!

When another tenant moaned about mould last summer I offered to go round that very same day with mould remover...guess what...she said " Dont worry, were moving out soon anyway!" Am I sinical or was she trying to jump on the band wagon?????
My question is therefore why can we not build all the measures needed into the AST and indeed run a 5 minute video educating tenants and then getting them to sign that they have understood and will do all the things necessary to prevent mould????

There are cases where landlords do not deal with the causes of damp such as leaky roofs or gutters. It is right that landlords are required to address these. In some cases, neglect by a previous tenant will have caused or exacerbated a problem but the landlord should still deal with it before the new tenants move in.

Tenants failing to report problems is also an issue especially with mould and dry rot, which will grow over time. Some tenants fear (and sadly, in some cases, fear rightly) that the landlord will evict them for complaining. Responsible landlords want to know about problems so that they can protect their valuable asset.

Another big factor is tenant behaviour. Things like ventilating rooms, not drying laundry in poorly ventilated rooms and heating the property sufficiently will help. Tenants who cannot afford to have the heating on, unfortunately will cause problems.

Last September Michael Gove said "The Government is clear that damp and mould should not be dismissed as a ‘lifestyle choice’ and that action to remove pervasive damp and mould must be taken by landlords." https://www.housingexecutive.co.uk/michael-gove-releases-letter-to-social-landlords-on-damp-and-mould/

This has been spun as tenants' lifestyle choices don't cause damp and mould which is patent nonsense. A more nuanced view is that landlords should not dismiss problems automatically as being caused by the tenant's behaviour. Unfortunately, the spin may win and tenants and Councils will pursue landlords when the damp and mould is really the tenant's fault.

Reply to the comment left by rebecca anelay at 22/01/2024 - 11:13
Growing up in the 50s and 60s,we lived in a 5 storey Georgian house, which had little to no maintenance by the landlord. We did it ourselves, even though we were renting. When the plaster started to flake above the skirting, we sanded and painted it. No extractors; open windows. No double glazing or central heating. No mould or condensation problems.

We now live in an 1840 townhouse, and still deal with the flaking plaster the same way. Except we now have all the creature comforts. No mould and no condensation.

I don't believe there are more bad properties in the PRS, but where they do exist, they give the rest of us a bad name, and there are plenty of laws and regulations already in place to protect tenants e.g. selective licensing [ha! ha!].

We have created an entitlement society, where it's always someone else's responsibility!

I'm so glad to be exiting the PRS to enjoy retirement; travelling the world in comfort, enjoying the company of friends and family, spending what we want, when we want, how we want, paying minimal tax [legally!], and with zero hassle from tenants.

Reply to the comment left by Ian Narbeth at 22/01/2024 - 11:51
I note Goves' wording as "it is the responsibility of all landlords to identify the underlying causes of damp and mould – such as structural issues or inadequate ventilation – and to find long term solutions."

So using Gove's own statement, if a landlord investigated and found no structural issue/ no external ingress problems and there was adequate structural ventilation, IT IS more than likely it is lifestyle choice.

If there were evidence from LL checks showing no opening of windows, damp clothes on radiators and lack of heating on/use then yes it would be justified to acknowledge it as tenant behaviour and therefore a dereliction of their own obligation of looking after the property in a tenant like manner. A long term solution may well be ultimately eviction therefore.

"Issues of damp, mould, fuel poverty and poor insulation are worse in private homes than any other tenure type."

Proof???

PS Fuel poverty is down to the tenants own circumstances not the building they live in. If they are associating damp and mould are as a result of low income then again how is this the building (or LLs ) fault?
Oh and the chances that they are in private accommodation is highly likely because there is no social housing they can apply for....duh!

Reply to the comment left by Ian Narbeth at 22/01/2024 - 11:51
I think this black mould thing has taken on a life of its own and just because a high percentage of people rent instead of owning it has been allowed to become significant. I think it is down to several factors some of which have already been highlighted such as heating turned off or on very low, lazy tenants who cant be bothered to address or don't understand it when it appears and leave it build up until it becomes a much bigger problem, spreads roots and spores everywhere staining not only paint work but getting into the plaster and silicone seals. Replacing these will only affect a temporary cure and it will return if the same conditions exist. Drying clothes indoors and not using electric clothes driers, even when they have been provided, such as in flats where access to outside is limited. My old stone cottage has been recently fully renovated and I keep it heated and fairly spotlessly clean but I have noticed that moulds are seeming to find a way to grow in the most unusual places these days and will appear growing on the underside of the plastic washing up bowl after about a couple of weeks of an attack with bleach and also appear in the spout of a drinking water container which I keep in the fridge ! I have not known this before and I think it is that moulds and algae are becoming more prolific and that we have to educate tenants how to manage properties on a regular basis to keep it at bay otherwise I think that we will be talking about this for the forseeable future as I don't think that these moulds are going to go away any time soon especially with the wet and cold weather. It's a headache.

Social Landlords have there own directly employed gas fitters, electricians, handymen Etc so its easy for them to deal any issues that come up.
The average private Landlord has to deal directly with contractors who may not be available.