The private rented sector is growing dramatically but the array of information relating to letting can be confusing and sometimes, key safety information can be lost in the jargon.
To address this, a concise, user-friendly guide for landlords has been produced by the Electrical Safety Council (ESC), to help them meet their legal responsibilities in relation to electrical safety.
Specifically designed to ensure all the essential information required is presented in an accessible, easy-to-read, format, the guide – which covers England, Scotland and Wales - aims to help landlords protect both their tenants and their property and also cover communal areas.
Landlords have a legal duty to ensure that their rental property – and any electrical equipment provided with it – is safe, both before a tenancy begins and for its duration. However, time and wear and tear can impact on the condition of an electrical installation and equipment. So landlords must ensure that their tenants (or anyone else entering or using the property) are not put at risk, by making sure that the installation remains in a safe condition.
Cutting to the core of various legislation and regulations, the guide provides key information on a range of essential topics, covering anything from explaining the different kinds of electrical checks required, to ensuring any electrical work is properly certified.
“We produced detailed landlords’ guides covering England, Scotland and Wales a few years ago, which were very well received”, explains Phil Buckle, Director General of the ESC. “But we felt that an abridged form of the guidance would be particularly helpful, allowing landlords to find the information they need quickly and easily and with signposts to more detailed information, should they need it. However, we hope that electrical contractors, property managers and estate agents, as well as landlords and tenants, will find this a useful source of information.”
The new landlord’s guide to electrical safety can be downloaded from our website at: www.esc.org.uk/landlords. A limited number of printed copies can be obtained by emailing: leaflets@esc.org.uk.