Landlord and tenant repair obligations - UK maintenance guide
February 9, 2026
Property maintenance sits at the heart of successful tenancies, yet confusion about repair responsibilities remains one of the most common sources of landlord-tenant disputes. Who pays for a broken boiler? What about a dripping tap? When does wear and tear become tenant damage? This comprehensive guide clarifies the legal framework governing landlord and tenant repair obligations in England and Wales, explains practical implementation, and shows how clear communication prevents conflicts whilst protecting both parties' interests.
The legal foundation of repair obligations
Understanding repair responsibilities begins with legislation. Multiple Acts create the framework governing who fixes what in rental properties.
The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 (Section 11) establishes landlords' fundamental repair obligations. These apply to most residential tenancies lasting less than seven years and cannot be contracted out. Landlords must maintain the property structure and exterior including walls, roof, gutters, drains, and external pipes. They must keep in repair and proper working order installations for water supply, gas, electricity, sanitation including basins, sinks, baths, and toilets, and space heating and water heating.
The Defective Premises Act 1972 extends landlords' duty of care to safety matters. Landlords must ensure properties remain safe and fit for habitation. This covers structural issues, damp, gas and electrical safety, and hazards that could cause injury.
The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 gives tenants additional rights to challenge poor property conditions. Properties must be fit for habitation at the tenancy start and throughout, considering factors like ventilation, natural lighting, water supply, drainage, freedom from damp and structural stability.
Landlord repair obligations explained
Landlords carry significant repair responsibilities that cannot be delegated to tenants through tenancy agreements. Understanding these obligations protects you from legal action, maintains property value, and keeps tenants satisfied.
Structure and exterior
Landlords must maintain the building's fundamental integrity. This includes repairing roof damage, leaks, or missing tiles, fixing structural walls and load-bearing elements, maintaining guttering and external drainage systems, replacing broken windows and external doors, and repairing foundations, damp proof courses, and chimney stacks where they affect habitability.
External decoration typically falls to landlords for rented flats and shared buildings. For houses, check your tenancy agreement carefully as arrangements vary.
Heating and hot water systems
Landlords must ensure tenants have functioning heating and hot water. This means maintaining boilers, radiators, and immersion heaters, servicing heating systems annually with valid Gas Safety Certificates, repairing or replacing broken boilers promptly, ensuring adequate heating throughout habitable rooms, and maintaining hot water supply to kitchens and bathrooms.
Emergency heating failures in winter require urgent response - ideally within 24 hours. Many landlords maintain relationships with priority-response contractors specifically for heating emergencies.
Plumbing and sanitation
Working toilets, baths, showers, sinks, and water supply are essential. Landlords must repair leaking pipes, blocked drains and toilets, broken taps and cisterns, faulty showers and baths, and issues affecting water pressure or supply.
Blocked drains caused by tenant misuse (flushing inappropriate items, pouring fat down sinks) may become tenant responsibility, but establishing causation can prove difficult. Most landlords absorb these costs to maintain relationships and avoid protracted disputes.
Electrical installations
The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 require landlords to ensure electrical installations remain safe. EICR inspections must occur every five years or at each tenancy change, whichever comes first.
Landlords must repair faulty wiring, broken sockets and switches, malfunctioning consumer units (fuse boxes), and dangerous electrical installations identified in inspections. Emergency electrical faults like exposed wiring, smoking sockets, or complete power loss require immediate attention.
Supplied appliances and fixtures
If you provide appliances as part of the tenancy, you must maintain them in working order. Common examples include cookers and hobs, refrigerators and freezers, washing machines and dishwashers, and extractor fans.
Kitchen worktops, fitted cupboards, bathroom suites, and built-in wardrobes also fall under landlord responsibility when supplied with the property. Document exactly what's included in your property inventory to avoid confusion about responsibility.
Fire and carbon monoxide safety
Landlords must provide and maintain fire safety equipment. Smoke alarms are required on every floor of the property. Carbon monoxide alarms must be fitted in rooms with fixed combustion appliances. Test all alarms at tenancy commencement and replace faulty units promptly.
Fire doors, emergency lighting in HMOs, and escape route clarity all fall under landlord responsibilities. Regular testing and maintenance protect tenant safety and your legal position.
Damp, mould, and condensation
Damp and mould represent complex responsibilities. Landlords must address structural damp caused by defects in the property, penetrating damp from roof leaks or failed damp proofing, rising damp affecting walls and floors, and inadequate ventilation contributing to condensation.
However, condensation damp caused purely by tenant behaviour (refusing to open windows, blocking vents, drying clothes on radiators without ventilation) may be tenant responsibility. Proving causation requires evidence, and many landlords find addressing ventilation improvements proves more practical than attempting to attribute blame.
Tenant repair responsibilities
Whilst landlords carry the major structural obligations, tenants have meaningful responsibilities for day-to-day property care and minor maintenance.
Day-to-day maintenance
Tenants must keep the property in a reasonable state of cleanliness and tidiness, dispose of rubbish properly and on scheduled collection days, replace light bulbs and batteries in tenant-owned devices, keep gardens tidy where this forms part of the agreement, and prevent infestations by maintaining cleanliness standards.
These obligations prevent properties from deteriorating through neglect whilst keeping boundaries clear about what landlords shouldn't need to attend to routinely.
Reporting repairs promptly
Tenants must notify landlords of repair issues reasonably quickly. Failing to report problems allows minor issues to escalate into major damage. A small leak ignored becomes ceiling collapse. A blocked gutter unreported leads to wall penetration and structural damp.
Tenants who delay reporting known defects may find themselves liable for consequential damage. Modern property management apps with maintenance reporting features make this simple - tenants photograph the issue, describe it, and submit instantly through their phone.
Avoiding damage beyond fair wear and tear
Fair wear and tear describes the natural deterioration from ordinary use over time. Faded paintwork, worn carpet in high-traffic areas, and scuffed skirting boards typically qualify. Tenants must avoid damage exceeding this standard.
Holes in walls from picture hanging beyond small pin marks, broken tiles or fixtures from misuse, pet damage to carpets, doors, or woodwork, and cigarette burns or staining all exceed fair wear and tear. Tenants remain liable for these through deposit deductions or direct payment.
Tenant-caused damage
Tenants must pay for repairs necessitated by their negligence, misuse, or deliberate acts. This includes broken windows, damaged doors, stained carpets from spills, and appliance damage from misuse.
Establishing liability requires evidence. Check-in reports with photographs create the baseline. Subsequent damage beyond fair wear and tear becomes tenant responsibility. Documented throughout the tenancy, these records prevent disputes at check-out.
Minor repairs under £50
Some tenancy agreements include clauses making tenants responsible for minor repairs below specified thresholds (commonly £50 to £100). These clauses must be clearly stated in the written agreement and cannot override landlords' statutory obligations for heating, water, or structural issues.
Courts often view such clauses sceptically if they effectively transfer statutory landlord obligations to tenants. Use them cautiously and ensure they cover only genuine minor items like replacing tap washers or unblocking sinks through normal maintenance.
Reasonable timeframes for repairs
The law doesn't specify exact repair timeframes, instead requiring landlords to complete repairs within a "reasonable time". What constitutes reasonable depends on repair urgency, severity, and impact on habitability.
Emergency repairs (24 hours) - Complete loss of heating in winter, no hot water, major leaks causing flooding, complete electrical failure, broken external locks compromising security, dangerous gas leaks, and blocked toilets where only one toilet exists.
Urgent repairs (3-7 days) - Partial heating failure, partial hot water issues, minor leaks contained but requiring repair, single broken appliance in multi-appliance households, and minor electrical faults not posing immediate danger.
Routine repairs (2-4 weeks) - Cosmetic damage not affecting habitability, dripping taps with functional water supply, minor plumbing issues not causing damage, replacement of working but inefficient appliances, and redecoration following tenant vacation.
Planned maintenance (next void period) - Major improvement works, full kitchen or bathroom replacement, redecorating occupied properties, and upgrades to non-essential amenities.
Clear communication about timeframes manages expectations and maintains relationships. As discussed in our guide to reasonable wait times for repairs, tenants appreciate knowing what to expect even when immediate fixes prove impossible.
How to handle repair requests effectively
Professional repair management prevents small issues becoming major disputes whilst protecting property value and tenant satisfaction.
Create clear reporting channels
Tenants need simple ways to report problems. Text messages and phone calls work but create no audit trail. Email provides records but often lacks urgency indicators. Maintenance reporting features in property management apps offer the ideal solution - tenants photograph the issue, describe the problem, indicate urgency, and submit through their phone. Landlords receive instant notifications with all necessary details.
Acknowledge requests immediately
Confirm receipt of repair requests quickly, even if you cannot fix the problem immediately. A simple "I've received your report about the leaking tap and I'll arrange a plumber this week" transforms tenant anxiety into reassurance. This acknowledgment costs nothing but dramatically improves the landlord-tenant relationship.
Assess and prioritise
Not all repairs demand equal urgency. Triage incoming requests based on safety risk, habitability impact, potential for consequential damage, and seasonal considerations. A broken boiler in December takes absolute priority over a dripping tap in July.
Keep tenants informed
Communication throughout the repair process matters enormously. Inform tenants when contractors will attend, what access requirements exist, expected completion timeframes, and any delays affecting the schedule. Over-communication rarely causes problems. Radio silence creates mistrust and frustration.
Document everything
Maintain comprehensive records of repair requests received, actions taken, contractor quotes and invoices, before and after photographs, and communication with tenants. If disputes reach adjudication or court, documented evidence proves essential. Modern property management systems store all this automatically, creating audit trails that protect both parties.
Access rights for repairs
Landlords need property access to conduct repairs, but cannot enter without proper notice and consent. Provide at least 24 hours' written notice stating the repair reason, proposed time, and expected duration. Tenants must allow access for necessary repairs at reasonable times.
If tenants persistently refuse access for essential repairs, you may eventually claim breach of tenancy obligations. However, courts expect landlords to demonstrate flexibility and genuine attempts at reasonable scheduling before taking formal action.
Emergency situations affecting safety or causing damage allow immediate entry. A major water leak flooding the property doesn't require 24 hours' notice. However, document the emergency nature, photograph the situation, and inform tenants as soon as practically possible.
Repair costs and rent deductions
Landlords bear the cost of repairs falling under their statutory obligations. You cannot pass these costs to tenants through rent increases timed around repairs or attempt to charge tenants directly.
Can tenants withhold rent if repairs aren't completed? Not legally. Rent remains due under the tenancy agreement regardless of repair issues. Tenants who withhold rent risk arrears and potential Section 8 possession proceedings.
However, tenants can apply for rent repayment orders if landlords seriously breach obligations. Courts may reduce rent retrospectively based on the property's reduced value during the disrepair period. This provides strong incentive for prompt repairs beyond simple tenant satisfaction.
Betterment and improvements
Repairs should restore properties to their previous condition, not improve them beyond the original standard. If you replace a basic bath with a luxury whirlpool model, that's betterment, not repair. You cannot require tenants to pay rent premiums for betterment arising from necessary repairs.
Conversely, like-for-like replacement proves perfectly reasonable. Replacing a broken standard oven with an equivalent standard model maintains the property baseline without betterment questions.
Using property management systems for repair management
Modern property management software transforms repair management from reactive firefighting into structured, professional processes.
Centralised maintenance reporting - Record every repair request, track contractor attendance, store before and after photographs, and maintain complete repair histories per property. This documentation proves invaluable during disputes and provides insights into recurring issues requiring permanent solutions.
Automated workflows - Tenants report issues through their app with photographs and descriptions. Landlords receive instant notifications, can categorise urgency and update tenants on progress. Everything stays documented automatically without manual record keeping.
Expense tracking - Log all repair costs against properties for tax purposes and portfolio analysis. Connect maintenance expenses to specific tenancies, export for accountants, and identify properties with unusual repair costs warranting investigation.
Compliance integration - Link repairs to compliance obligations. A boiler repair triggers a prompt to update the Gas Safety Certificate. An electrical fault check ensures your EICR remains current.
Preventing repair disputes
Most repair disputes arise from poor communication, unclear responsibilities, or delayed action rather than genuine disagreement about obligations.
Create detailed inventories - Comprehensive check-in reports with photographs establish property condition baselines. Document every room, appliance condition, existing marks or damage, and cleanliness standards. Both parties sign, creating shared reference points for future condition assessments.
Maintain properties proactively - Follow a structured landlord calendar covering seasonal maintenance, annual safety checks, and periodic property inspections. Catching problems early through inspections prevents emergency repairs whilst demonstrating professional property management.
Communicate clearly and promptly - Respond to repair requests quickly even if solutions take time. Explain what you're doing, why delays occur, and when tenants can expect resolution. Transparency builds trust that survives temporary inconveniences.
Document everything thoroughly - Keep records of all communications, contractor quotes, photographs, and completed work. Digital document storage through property management apps makes this effortless whilst ensuring nothing gets lost in email threads or paper files.
Choose quality contractors - Reliable tradespeople who respond quickly, communicate professionally, and complete work properly prevent repeat visits and tenant frustration. Build relationships with trusted contractors before emergencies arise.
When tenants can take action
If landlords fail to complete required repairs after reasonable requests, tenants have several options.
Tenants can report serious hazards to the local authority Environmental Health department. Officers can inspect properties and serve enforcement notices requiring repairs. Landlords who ignore these notices face prosecution and fines.
Tenants can apply to the First-tier Tribunal for rent reduction orders if disrepair significantly affects their use of the property. The Tribunal can reduce rent retrospectively and order repairs.
In extreme cases, tenants can seek injunctions compelling landlords to complete repairs or claim damages for losses arising from disrepair. Legal costs and potential compensation make prompt repairs financially sensible beyond the moral obligation.
The bottom line on repair obligations
Clear understanding of landlord and tenant repair responsibilities creates fair, professional rental relationships. Landlords must maintain property structure, heating, water, electrical systems, and supplied appliances. Tenants must care for properties day-to-day, report problems promptly, and avoid damage beyond fair wear and tear.
Effective repair management combines legal compliance, practical systems, clear communication, and appropriate technology. Modern property management platforms provide the infrastructure making professional maintenance simple even for small landlords managing properties alongside other commitments.
Your tenants depend on well-maintained, safe homes. Your investment depends on proper preservation and documented compliance. Quality repair management protects both whilst preventing the disputes that cause stress, cost, and relationship breakdowns.
Also see our article on What's a reasonable wait time for repairs?
Disclaimer: This article is a guide and not intended to be relied upon as legal or professional advice, or as a substitute for it. August does not accept any liability for any errors, omissions or misstatements contained in this article. Always speak to a suitably qualified professional if you require specific advice or information.
Author
August Team
The August editorial team lives and breathes rental property. They work closely with a panel of experienced landlords and industry partners across the UK, turning real world portfolio and tenancy experience into clear, practical guidance for small landlords.





