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Tenants Will Soon Be Able To Sue Landlords Over 'Unfit' Homes

Tenants Will Soon Be Able To Sue Landlords Over 'Unfit' Homes

Your house must be deemed 'unfit for living' before you can begin throwing threats around to your landlord

Rebecca Shepherd

Rebecca Shepherd

Remember when you lived in that flat at University with the leaking roof, or the holey walls? No, just me?

Well, if you're having a similar experience you might actually be able to do something about it now instead of the landlord of your house ignoring your emails, then calls, then face to face chats and so on...

This is because homeowners who rent their properties out will soon be required by law to keep their homes 'fit for human habitation' meaning that tenants will have the power to sue.

According to the Metro, The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act will become a law on March 20 and it is directed at houses that are kept in a sorry state of repair.

And with house prices rising seven times faster than young peoples' average income it's probably more likely than not that most of us are going to rent at one point - which makes it even more probable that you're going to experience something going wrong.

You will soon be able to take your landlord to court for a number of issues.
PA

And don't make a fool out of yourself because before you start throwing threats around like you're ten men, remember - you can't take the landlord to court before the property is deemed 'unfit for living' first.

If the place you're renting is too cold, too hot (is there such a thing?!), has damp, asbestos or issues with noise and lighting then you can take your landlord to court.

Bad news is that it will only apply to tenancies of less than seven years because, lets face it, if you've lived there over seven years you're not that arsed, are you?

You can take your landlord to court for a range of issues.
PA

Some organisations believe that the law could help to prevent tragedies such as the Grenfell tower fire which left 72 people dead and more than 70 people injured.

It was found that a faulty refrigerator has started the fire, but it was also then discovered that the building's exterior cladding had been said to be unsafe but was used anyway. This cladding allowed the outside of the building to catch fire and the blaze to spread.

Housing Organisation, Shelter, wrote in a blog post: "Extraordinarily, this is a not a protection currently enjoyed by any renter - social or private - in England.

"Although landlords have responsibilities to do repairs, there are some glaring omissions - including, for example, damp and mould caused by the structure of the building.

"Crucially, the Bill will help private and social renter's voices to be heard, by giving them the right to take their landlord to court over unfit and unsafe conditions like these in their home."

If only this was a thing back in 2013...

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: UK News, News, Housing, UK