Electrical safety & landlord awareness
High voltage
While gas and fire safety requirements have become paramount across the PRS, the emphasis on electrical protection is yet to catch up. Phil Buckle, of charity Electrical Safety First, explains how this is changing.
F
or almost 20 years, landlords have had to provide annual gas safety certificates, while in October 2015 the requirement for carbon monoxide alarms in private rented sector properties also came into
force. But, until recently, there was no equivalent legislation covering electrical safety in the sector – yet it kills more people than gas or carbon monoxide poisoning combined. According to the English Housing Survey, in 2014-15, 19 per cent (4.3 million) of households were renting privately – a trend replicated across the UK. The PRS is now a fundamental component of the housing landscape being used by an increasing number of people – but such rapid growth brings its own problems. While most landlords are responsible and law-abiding, the accelerated
expansion of the PRS has highlighted safety concerns and electrical safety as a particular issue, as electrical problems tend to be invisible until an accident occurs. This is particularly worrying as the demographic of the PRS has changed, from mobile younger people to families with children. Fires with an electrical cause are (conservatively) estimated to
produce £1bn worth of damage to homes a year and lead to almost half of all UK house fires. But legislation now placing electrical safety in the PRS on a par with gas and carbon monoxide protection is happening – although in a rather piecemeal fashion throughout the UK, and Scotland is leading the way.
36 | HMM May 2017 |
www.housingmmonline.co.uk Division
The disparity occurs because the governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can introduce new laws on a range of issues, including housing, through their devolved powers. Over the last couple of years, Electrical Safety First has worked closely with Westminster and the devolved governments to ensure electrical regulations for PRS homes are fit for purpose. While regular electrical safety checks are considered best practice by some leading landlord bodies, unless houses of multiple occupation (HMOs) are rented out, landlords’ legal obligations around electrical safety have been rather broadly defined. The general requirement was simply to ensure that the electrical installation in a rental property is safe when tenants move in – and that it is maintained in this condition during the tenancy – along with any electrical items supplied.
Specific proposals
The new regulations Electrical Safety First called for make such requirements much more specific: regular electrical checks undertaken every five years by a competent, registered electrician, of both the installation and any electrical appliance supplied with it. In addition,
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