New law means tenants can sue landlords over cold and mouldy homes
Housing charity Shelter says there are currently almost 1million rented homes with hazards that pose a serious risk to health and safety
RENTERS in England and Wales will soon be able to take their landlords to court over problems including cold and damp homes.
Currently, private renters have to rely on over-stretched local authorities to investigate poor conditions, while social tenants have no effective means to hold their council to account, according to Shelter.
And the housing charity warns there are currently almost 1million rented homes with hazards that pose a serious risk to health and safety.
But the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act, which will amend the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, should change this.
It'll take force on March 20 and means landlords must make sure their properties meet certain standards at the beginning and throughout a tenancy.
Shelter says the new rules will see issues such as damp caused by design defects - from a lack of ventilation, for example, rather than disrepair, and infestations of rodents, insects, and bed bugs fall under the landlord's responsibility for the first time.
Renters posted pictures of damp, mould filled flats on social media last year as campaigners called for fairer terms for tenants.
But there are more changes planned for renters this year, from deposit caps to three-year tenancies – we round-up the changes to renting that you need to know about in 2019.
A ban on letting agents charging renters rip-off fees will take force from this summer.
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