Mandatory Landlord electrical checks?

[baldelectrician]

https://www.snp.org/media-centre/news/2013/dec/call-mandatory-electrical-safety-checks

As some of you may or may not know I am a bit of a political anorak.

There is a housing bill going through the Scottish Parliament which amongst other things will end council house sales and regulate letting agents.

One MSP is proposing to make it a legal requirement for landlords to have an electrical check.

Anecdotal evidence has around 90% of private rented homes with no satisfactory electrical check.

The to the proposal is at the top of the item

I posted it here as many landlords will find out and try to stop this from being implemented.

Text of linked article:

Call for mandatory electrical safety checks
Sat, 28/12/2013 - 09:23
The introduction of mandatory electrical safety checks in privately rented accommodation enabling safer conditions for tenants to live in safer homes is being championed by Bob Doris MSP.


Mr Doris, MSP for Glasgow, over the past few months has been working closely with the Electrical Safety Council (ESC). The charity has been instrumental in raising awareness of the issue and campaigning for improvements in safety standards in homes.


Bob Doris MSP said:


“Landlords have a responsibility to ensure that their properties are safe for purpose for their tenants.


“Most landlords are good landlords and ensure that their homes are fit for purpose and safe – but good practice needs to be regulated to ensure it is universal across Scotland.


“The proposal by the ESC for mandatory, five yearly checks, by a registered electrician, of both the electrical installation in a rented property and any electrical appliances supplied with it is both sensible and practical.


“I intend to bring forward an amendment to the Housing Bill next year and am hopeful that the vital aspect will be underpinned in the legislation.


“I have met with the Margaret Burgess, the Scottish Government Housing Minister, and I understand she is open-minded to this idea which will make thousands of Scotland’s homes safer.”


Phil Buckle, Director General of the ESC added:


“We are delighted that Bob Doris is supporting our proposal. With the majority of domestic fires in Scotland caused by electricity, we believe regular electrical safety checks - undertaken by a suitably qualified person - is particularly important for raising standards in the Private Rented Sector.


69% of all accidental fires in Scottish homes (more than 3,400 annually) are caused by electricity.

 

[telectrix]

applaud the initiative, but take issue with the 69% cased by electricity. for years they've been telling us that most house fires are caused by "discarded smoking materials". next they'll be telling us it's sun shining on discarded beer bottles, or find some other target. ( post made more in humour than seriousness) .

 

[Engineer54]

applaud the initiative, but take issue with the 69% cased by electricity. for years they've been telling us that most house fires are caused by "discarded smoking materials". next they'll be telling us it's sun shining on discarded beer bottles, or find some other target. ( post made more in humour than seriousness) .

Agree, ...You can never seem to get these people to stump up where they get such evidential data, to support such claims. Many of these satistical claims are based purely on assumptions being made.

 

[tazz]

We have found, most local councils we deal with under HMO renting, insist on a full package. and will not grant a licence unless the following certification is presented, electrical test, Gas, fire alarm, emergency lighting and fire extinguishers. And to give the councils agents their due, they have been well trained up over the past few years, showing up quiet a few fire officers. Scotland has its own regulations and laws, and does not form part of the criteria of English regulations to HMO and landlords.

 

[richy3333]

Guess they are building on what legislation already exists?:


The Housing (Scotland) Act 2006, as amended , applies to landlords and tenants in
private sector housing, although some provisions within the Act do relate to housing
rented by local authorities.
The Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 requires an electrical installation in a rented property to
be:
in a reasonable state of repair and proper working order at the start of the tenancy
and at all times during the tenancy
Part 1 of the Act contains two significant chapters with respect to the electrical
installations within rented properties that landlords need to be aware of and act upon.
The names of those chapters are the 'tolerable' standard and the 'repairing' standard.
Chapter 3 - The ‘tolerable’ standard
This chapter of the Act extends the definitions set out in Section 86 of the Housing
(Scotland) Act 1987 to include electrical safety.
The 'tolerable' standard requires that:
'the electrical installation within a rented property is to be adequate and safe.'
One way to meet this is to follow the technical rules in BS 7671, Requirements for
Electrical Installations (otherwise known as the Wiring Regulations), published by the
Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET).
Whilst the Wiring Regulations are non-statutory, they are often used to demonstrate
compliance with a statutory obligation. The Scottish Building Standards Division (SBSD)
Technical Handbooks, for example, states that a new installation conforming to the
standard set in BS 7671 will satisfy the safety requirements for electrical installations in the
Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004.
An electrical installation is defined in Chapter 14 of the Housing (Scotland) Act
2006 as ‘the electrical wiring within the property and associated components and
fittings, but excludes equipment and appliances.’
The 'tolerable' standard also requires:
adequate lighting, heating, and hot water and ventilation to be provided within the
rented property. For rented properties without central heating, the electrical
installation must be able to support an adequate number of portable electric heaters
The Electrical Safety Council Landlords’Guide to Electrical Safety in Scotland
6
a suitable safe space is available for a cooking appliance to be installed inside the
main living area of the house. This means that a tenant should not have to go
outside, or through someone else's property, to reach the cooking facilities. A
cooker should not be located under a stair, in a cupboard off a room, in a garage,
or anywhere that requires the occupier to go outside or through another person's
house to access it. A property having the power source for a cooker located in any
of these places is likely to fall below the 'tolerable' standard.
Where a cooker is provided with the property, and it is electric, it must be
connected to a fixed electrical power outlet suitable for a standard electric cooker
(i.e. one with an oven, grill and four hot plates).
Chapter 4 - The ‘repairing’ standard
The ‘repairing’ standard defines the statutory requirements that have to be met by a
private landlord. It covers various aspects of the property. From an electrical
perspective, these include the electrical installation, electrical appliances, electrical
heating, lighting and the hot water system(s).
A landlord in a tenancy must ensure that the rented property meets the ‘repairing’
standard at:
the start of the tenancy and
at all times during the tenancy.

 

[SPARTYKUS]

Guess they are building on what legislation already exists?:


The Housing (Scotland) Act 2006, as amended , applies to landlords and tenants in
private sector housing, although some provisions within the Act do relate to housing
rented by local authorities.
The Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 requires an electrical installation in a rented property to
be:
in a reasonable state of repair and proper working order at the start of the tenancy
and at all times during the tenancy
Part 1 of the Act contains two significant chapters with respect to the electrical
installations within rented properties that landlords need to be aware of and act upon.
The names of those chapters are the 'tolerable' standard and the 'repairing' standard.
Chapter 3 - The ‘tolerable’ standard
This chapter of the Act extends the definitions set out in Section 86 of the Housing
(Scotland) Act 1987 to include electrical safety.
The 'tolerable' standard requires that:
'the electrical installation within a rented property is to be adequate and safe.'
One way to meet this is to follow the technical rules in BS 7671, Requirements for
Electrical Installations (otherwise known as the Wiring Regulations), published by the
Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET).
Whilst the Wiring Regulations are non-statutory, they are often used to demonstrate
compliance with a statutory obligation. The Scottish Building Standards Division (SBSD)
Technical Handbooks, for example, states that a new installation conforming to the
standard set in BS 7671 will satisfy the safety requirements for electrical installations in the
Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004.
An electrical installation is defined in Chapter 14 of the Housing (Scotland) Act
2006 as ‘the electrical wiring within the property and associated components and
fittings, but excludes equipment and appliances.’
The 'tolerable' standard also requires:
adequate lighting, heating, and hot water and ventilation to be provided within the
rented property. For rented properties without central heating, the electrical
installation must be able to support an adequate number of portable electric heaters
The Electrical Safety Council Landlords’Guide to Electrical Safety in Scotland
6
a suitable safe space is available for a cooking appliance to be installed inside the
main living area of the house. This means that a tenant should not have to go
outside, or through someone else's property, to reach the cooking facilities. A
cooker should not be located under a stair, in a cupboard off a room, in a garage,
or anywhere that requires the occupier to go outside or through another person's
house to access it. A property having the power source for a cooker located in any
of these places is likely to fall below the 'tolerable' standard.
Where a cooker is provided with the property, and it is electric, it must be
connected to a fixed electrical power outlet suitable for a standard electric cooker
(i.e. one with an oven, grill and four hot plates).
Chapter 4 - The ‘repairing’ standard
The ‘repairing’ standard defines the statutory requirements that have to be met by a
private landlord. It covers various aspects of the property. From an electrical
perspective, these include the electrical installation, electrical appliances, electrical
heating, lighting and the hot water system(s).
A landlord in a tenancy must ensure that the rented property meets the ‘repairing’
standard at:
the start of the tenancy and
at all times during the tenancy.

Och ayeee ye surely know what is goin doon' in the world of electricity ken ye haggis lobster, etc etc

 

[baldelectrician]

I hope this goes through- work is quiet and this will increase business

I reckon that only 5%-10% of properties are tested.

 

[baldelectrician]

Spoke to my local MSP today and he said he will keep an eye out for me

He said he will drop me an email when it goes to committee as I want to go (yes I am sad)

The bill is at stage 1, so it's a year away from hitting the statue books