As a tenant in the UK, you are entitled to live in a property that is safe, secure, and well-maintained.
Your landlord, whether private, council, or housing association, has a legal duty to ensure your living conditions meet acceptable standards. Knowing your rights is essential to protect yourself and your family from unsafe or unhealthy living conditions.
This guide highlights the key areas where you can seek compensation or legal support if your landlord fails to uphold their responsibilities.
No matter who your landlord is—whether a private landlord, housing association, or council—they are legally obligated to provide a safe, habitable property. You should not have to live with disrepair or unsafe conditions. Common issues tenants may face include:
If your landlord fails to address these problems, you could be entitled to compensation. This may come in the form of rent refunds or a claim for the distress and inconvenience you’ve endured.
Compensation can also cover additional costs you’ve incurred, such as higher energy bills due to a faulty boiler. If you’ve suffered because of your landlord’s negligence, know that you have options to claim what you’re owed.
Your landlord is responsible for ensuring the property is free from health hazards and in good repair. If your property has issues such as damp, mould, rodent infestation, or other statutory nuisances, it is their duty to fix them.
Under the Environmental Protection Act, tenants have legal routes to force landlords to act on disrepair.In cases where landlords ignore requests for repairs, tenants can take legal action.
If the property conditions affect your health or safety, you may be entitled to compensation through this process as well.
If your landlord has been unresponsive to your emails or refuses to resolve the issues, we can help you serve notice on the landlord to compel them to fix the problem. Best of all, we do not charge tenants for this service.
By law, your landlord is required to protect your tenancy deposit in a government-approved deposit protection scheme. This protection ensures that your deposit is safe and can only be deducted for legitimate reasons, such as unpaid rent or damages beyond normal wear and tear.
Unfortunately, many landlords fail to protect deposits properly. If your landlord has not protected your deposit, or if they didn’t inform you of where it’s being held, you could be entitled to claim up to three times the amount of your original deposit in compensation.
This legal protection is designed to prevent unfair deductions and ensure that tenants are treated fairly.
Big changes are coming to the rental market. The abolishment of Section 21, also known as "no-fault evictions," means landlords will no longer be able to evict tenants without a legitimate reason. This reform gives tenants greater security, allowing you to feel more comfortable in your home without fear of being asked to leave without justification—especially if you’re holding your landlord accountable for repairs.
Awaab’s Law, which was introduced in response to tragic cases of tenants living in uninhabitable conditions, provides further protection. It requires landlords to act swiftly on complaints of health hazards such as damp and mould. You have the right to live in a home that is safe, and this new legislation makes it easier to enforce that right.
If you’d like to speak to one of our agents about any of these issues or discuss your options, call us or email us at support@therta.co.uk. We’re here to help you understand and exercise your rights as a tenant.
