Click here to view these – The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020

Duties of private landlords concerning electrical installations £0

The new regulations regarding electrical installations apply to all rented properties, including Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs), the timescales that have been announced are:

• 1 July 2020 for all new tenancies
• 1 April 2021 for existing tenancies

The landlord must ensure that each property has an electrical safety inspection and test carried out by a qualified electrician; the certificate must cover the property for a duration of five years. We have been arranging these electrical safety checks for some of our managed properties already (where landlords have already been chosing to), and we have found that arranging for the safety inspection is not too expensive. Any existing 5 year certificate will be valid until its expiry.

However, if the inspection and testing identify any areas that need remedial action, this can be a time consuming and costly exercise. The regulations state that if there is a potential fault, then the repairs must be carried out within 28 days of the inspection.

We are therefore recommending that all landlords arrange for an electrical safety check as soon as possible, for new and existing tenancies. This will give you time to plan and budget for any necessary updates to the electrical installations to be made.

Electrical Safety Report Compliance

Once you have the Electrical Safety Report for your property, you need to ensure that you comply with the following rules:

• The report should be given to existing tenants within 28 days of the inspection.
• For new tenants, the report should be supplied before they occupy the property.
• If the local authority requests a copy, this should be supplied within seven days.
• The report should be filed so it can be given to the next qualified person inspecting the property.

As electrical safety checks will be a mandatory requirement, the local authorities do have the right to impose fines if there is any breach to the regulation. Financial penalties of up to £330,000 can be issued.

If you are a landlord or property investor and you would like us to help arrange for the electrical safety check to be carried out, please do contact us as we work with qualified electricians. £0 You can email us onenquiries@kingswoodrim.co.uk £0or call us Nottingham: 0115 704 3163 or Mansfield: 01623 277 115

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