CORONAVIRUS CONSIDERATIONS: Tradespeople and working in people’s homes
You are a tradesperson carrying out essential repairs and maintenance in people’s homes. You can continue work, providing that you are well and have no symptoms. You should notify all clients in advance of your arrival. On entry to the home you should wash your hands using soap and water for 20 seconds. You should wash your hands regularly, particularly after blowing your nose, sneezing or coughing, and when leaving the property. Where facilities to wash hands are not available, hand sanitiser should be used, and you should carry this with you at all times. You should maintain a safe distance (at least 2 metres) from any household occupants at all times, and ensure good ventilation in the area where you are working, including opening the window.
No work should be carried out in any household which is isolating or where an individual is being shielded, unless your work is to remedy a direct risk to the safety of the household, such as emergency plumbing or repair. No work should be carried out by a tradesperson who has coronavirus symptoms, however mild.
The Electrical Safety Standards in The Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020
The Electrical Safety Standards Regulations 2020 come into force on 1st July 2020 for landlords offering new residential tenancies from 1st July onwards.
With a potential penalty of up to £30,000 for non-compliance with the Electrical Safety Regulations, it is essential for landlords to organise these mandatory electrical inspections.
What Type of Tenancies are affected the Electrical Safety Regulations?
Residential tenancies where tenants have the right to occupy either all or part of a premises as their only or main residence, they pay a rent, and it is not listed as an excluded tenancy in the Regulations (more info below)
Note: The regulations currently only apply to rental properties in England only. And the regulations replace those already in place for HMOs.
Which Tenancies Are Excluded from The Electrical Safety Regulations?
Private registered providers of social housing; lodger arrangements; long leases or tenancies which grant a right of occupation for a term of 7 years or more; student lettings in halls of residence; and tenancies granted to occupiers of hostels, refuges, care homes, hospitals, hospices and other accommodation provided as a result of a duty imposed on an NHS body.
When Are the Regulations Effective From?
For new private tenancies entered into from 1st July 2020
For existing tenancies from 1st April 2021.
What Do Landlords Need to Do?
- Hire a qualified person to carry out an inspection to check that the electrical installations in their rental properties comply with the 2018 edition of the Institute of Engineering and Technology wiring regulations.
- Ensure the electrician prepares a report detailing: (i) results of the inspection and (ii) date of the next inspection (which will need to be at least every 5 years)
- Initial inspections need to be carried out before any new tenancy is granted from 1st July 2020, and by 1st April 2021 for existing tenancies.
- If the report identifies a breach, further investigations must be carried out within 28 days of the inspection, or within a shorter period if specified. Landlords should obtain written confirmation of completion of the remedial works and provide this within 28 days of completion to each existing tenant, and to the local authority.
Report Requirements
The report will need to be supplied to new tenants before they move in, to existing tenants within 28 days of receiving it, and to any prospective tenant within 28 days of their request to view the report.
Local Authority’s Powers to Compel Compliance
We have the authority to demand sight of the report, which landlords should provide within 7 days of the request or they may face a penalty.
We also have the power to serve a remedial notice on a landlord to compel them to comply with the regulations if they have reasonable grounds to believe the landlord is in breach.
Landlords have 28 days from the date the notice is received to remedy the breach, and if the work is not carried out in time then the local authority has the power to carry out the required works themselves (on providing prior written notice to the landlord) and then recover their costs from the landlord.
Landlords who fail to comply with the regulations may face a civil penalty up to a maximum of £30,000, with the potential for multiple penalties to be imposed for a continuing failure
Please follow this link to the published Legislation
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2020/9780111191934
For further information/ clarification contact environmentalhealth@scilly.gov.uk