​MEES and boiler safety: Landlords - are you breaking the law?

Updated research* from Cover4LetProperty.co.uk - the landlord insurance specialists – suggests that some private landlords may be unwittingly breaking the law and potentially comprising the health and safety of their tenants.

The study reveals:

• 6% of tenants say their boiler was serviced over a year ago;
• one in five (20%) private tenants are unaware when their boiler was last serviced. This is an improvement on the last study (December 2016) which showed that 31% of private tenants did not know when their boiler was last serviced;

• 86% of private tenants are unaware of their rights regarding the energy efficiency of their rented property.

Richard Burgess, Director at Cover4LetProperty, commented: “While it is the responsibility of a landlord to ensure that the boiler is serviced annually - and an obligation under their landlord insurance policy - our research highlighted that 6% of tenants said the last time their boiler was serviced was over a year ago”.

Mr. Burgess added: “Our study also showed that just 14% of tenants were aware of the new legislation relating to energy performance ratings which come in to force April this year.

“Landlords whose properties do not meet minimum requirements for energy performance standards by April 2018 may face very stiff penalties.

“While we specialise in helping landlords with protecting their property portfolios, we urge them to understand their legal obligations relating to health and safety and energy efficiency.”

Ends

* Independent survey of 100 tenants carried out January 2018 via Usurv.

** Independent survey of 100 tenants carried out December 2016 via Usurv.