Tags:
If you rent your home, sometimes there can be a bit of grey area around your rights and responsibilities and your landlord’s – especially when it comes to who pays for what.
In this blog, we run through the ins and outs, to help you avoid ending up out of pocket.
The information here applies to people who rent their homes from a private landlord, usually with an assured shorthold tenancy agreement. This is the most common tenancy if you rent privately. Different rules may apply if you rent your home through a housing association, your local council, or under a different type of tenancy agreement.
As a tenant, you have the right to:
In exchange, you will have some responsibilities to meet. These are to:
Not all of your rights and responsibilities will affect you financially – or at least not directly. So, let’s take a look at some of the ones that could, so you know where you stand and can make the best choices to protect your money when you need to.
You might think that if you’re asked to pay fees before you sign a tenancy agreement, then you don’t have a leg to stand on to challenge it if you think they’re expensive. After all, you’re technically not the tenant yet.
But, there is a piece of legislation - The Tenant Fees Act – which protects you from hidden costs and excessively high charges, even before you’ve signed on the dotted line.
The Tenant Fees Act came into force on 1st June 2019 and bans most fees that landlords and letting agents could charge tenants. Now, the only payments they can charge you are:
If you’re asked to pay more for any of these things, or for something that isn’t on this list, then you can challenge the fees. If the fees are being charged by a letting or estate agent, you can also complain using this procedure.
As a tenant, you have the right to see a copy of a property’s energy performance certificate, or EPC. Landlords must provide tenants with an EPC by law – if they don’t, they can be fined. If you live in a rented property and haven’t seen your home’s EPC, you can request it from your landlord at any time. Or, you can look up your address on the government's website.
EPC ratings go from A to G, with A being the best. As well as the rating, the certificate will show you the property’s estimated gas and electricity costs, and any recommendations on how to make the property more energy efficient.
Seeing a property’s EPC could be extremely useful when deciding whether to rent a property or not. It can also be helpful to have during negotiations if your landlord wants to increase your rent. If a property has a low energy efficiency rating, then you may be able to negotiate a discount on the rent, or avoid any increases, until the landlord has completed work to improve the property’s energy performance rating and had it reassessed.
If a property is rated F or G, then legally, your landlord cannot rent it to new tenants until the EPC has been improved. From 2025, the property you’re hoping to rent must have a minimum EPC rating of C. So, if you live in or are looking at a property that’s relatively inefficient, you could use this as a bargaining chip when negotiating your rent!
Who pays for repairs to a home you rent depends on what repairs are needed and why.
As a rule, it’s your landlord’s responsibility to organise and pay for any major repairs needed to the structure of the property or to fixtures, fittings and appliances provided by them. This is part of your right to live in a home that’s safe and kept in good condition. Repairs your landlord is responsible for could include:
Meanwhile, you’ll cover any minor repairs that are part and parcel of living in a property, like changing lightbulbs. You’re also responsible for paying to repair any damage caused by you, or someone visiting you. If a visitor of yours damages your home, you may be able to get the money back from them, but ultimately, it’s your responsibility to pay.
Before you stump up for any repairs, it’s worth checking whether this is something your landlord should be covering. If you’re not sure, or if your landlord is reluctant to pay, then you can speak to Citizen’s Advice for guidance.
When you report an issue to your landlord, then your right to live in a home that’s safe and in good condition kicks in, and means that the repair work should be completed in a timely manner. What is considered timely depends on how urgently the repair needs doing – a broken boiler in the middle of winter needs fixing sooner than a tap that keeps dripping!
However, when repairs need doing, your responsibility to grant your landlord access to your property as needed kicks in, too.
Unless it’s an emergency, your landlord should give you at least 24 hours’ notice before they or a professional repairperson come round, and they should visit at a reasonable time of day. This is part of your right to live in your property undisturbed.
If your landlord or their appointed repairperson arrives unannounced, then you’re within your rights to turn them away. This may not always be in your best interests, though, especially if sending them away could delay the completion of repairs. So, wield this right wisely!
When it comes to deposits, a couple of your rights as a tenant come into play. These are:
Let’s look at how each of these play out.
Under an assured shorthold tenancy agreement, your landlord must place your deposit in a government-approved tenancy deposit scheme by law. These schemes are designed to make sure that as long as you’ve met the terms of your tenancy agreement, you’ll get your deposit back when it ends. This usually means you must have paid your rent and bills throughout your tenancy, and have taken good care of the property, too.
If you haven’t met all the terms of your tenancy agreement, then your landlord may deduct money from your deposit to cover their costs. This is where your right to challenge excessively high charges could apply if you feel you’ve been treated unfairly.
If your landlord wants to deduct money from your deposit and you feel that it’s unjustified or excessive, then you can challenge them. One way to do this is by using your tenancy deposit scheme’s free dispute resolution service. If you want to go down this route, then your landlord will need to agree to use the dispute service, too.
If you raise a dispute, then you’ll both be asked to provide evidence to make your case. For example, if your landlord wanted to deduct money from your deposit to repair damage that was already in the property before you moved in, then you could challenge them. You’d need to provide proof that the damage wasn’t caused by you, such as inventory documents provided when you moved in, or copies of emails sent between you advising the landlord of the damage.
If you raise a dispute through your tenancy deposit scheme, then their decision on how much of your deposit you’ll get back will be final.
Renting with pets? Find out how new legislation could make it easier for you to find a new, pet-friendly home!
Disclaimer: We make every effort to ensure that content is correct at the time of publication. Please note that information published on this website does not constitute financial advice, and we aren’t responsible for the content of any external sites.
Helen is a personal finance editor who’s spent 11 years (and counting!) in the finance industry. She creates content on everything money with the goal of getting people thinking – and talking – about their finances in ways they may not have done before.
Sign up for tips on how to improve your credit score, offers and deals to help you save money, exclusive competitions and exciting products!
