It is set to become a criminal offence for private landlords to let property that fails to meet a new Decent Homes Standard. 

This is the proposal contained in a consultative paper, A Decent Homes Standard in the private rented sector: consultation published by the Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities. 

Most private rented sector landlords and agents take their responsibilities seriously and treat their tenants fairly, said the consultation paper. However, ‘a minority let homes that are unsafe or not of a reasonable standard. Over a fifth of the 4.4m households that rent privately endure poor conditions and lack security and control over the homes they pay to live in’.

To address this, the Government plans to introduce a legal duty on landlords to ensure their property meets the Decent Homes Standard. ‘If landlords are in breach of this requirement as identified by a local council through an inspection, this would be a criminal offence and it can be dealt with by either issuing a civil penalty or undertaking a prosecution in the magistrate’s court’. Failure to meet the Decent Homes Standard would also be a ‘banning order offence’ and grounds for a Rent Repayment Order. 

‘I want to see a thriving private rented sector, but that does not mean that tenants should have to suffer homes that are not of decent standard’, said Housing Secretary Greg Clark. ‘This consultation asks what the minimum standard for privately rented homes should be’.

The consultation paper, which is open for comment until 14 October, proposes that to be ‘decent’ houses let in the private rented sector must meet four criteria: they meet the current statutory minimum standard for housing; are in a reasonable state of repair; have reasonable facilities and services; and provide ‘a reasonable degree of thermal comfort’.

To meet current statutory minimum standards, houses must be free of category 1 hazards, assessed through the Housing Health and Safety Rating System.

To be in a reasonable state of repair there must be no key building component, such as a wall or chimneys, wiring or plumbing, or central heating appliances, that are both old and in need of replacement because of their condition. Neither must there be more than one other building component that is both old and, because of its condition, in need of replacement or repair.

What amount to ‘reasonable facilities’ will be judged in line with the standard applied in the English Housing Survey. So, a dwelling will be considered not to have met the new Decent Homes Standard if it lacks: a kitchen with adequate space and layout; or an appropriately located bathroom and WC.