- HMO landlords now face some pretty stiff rules on installing washbasins - ignore them at your peril!

The new Housing Act regulations on licensing of houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) for England and Wales came into force on April 6th.  This sets out new management standards for all HMOs, even those that won't need a licence under the new rules. 

The new Act must have made the UK's plumbers lick their lips because the Act's regulations on amenity standards for larger HMOs are tough and will mean landlords will have to install new washbasins.

Or will they? Let's have a look at what the rules say.

The Basic Standards 

The basic standards in the rules are as follows, though local authorities may set higher standards:

For kitchen facilities, there must be enough sinks with draining boards as well as equipment for cooking food, electrical sockets, cupboards, freezer space and refrigerators as well as extractor fans, fire blankets and fire doors.

For washing facilities, if there are four or less occupiers, there must be at least one bathroom with bath or shower and one toilet (which can be located in the bathroom.) This should not be a problem for most landlords.

Other amenity standards say that there must be enough fire precaution facilities and equipment, each unit of living accommodation should be adequately heated, baths, showers and wash hand basins must have hot and cold running water, bathrooms should be heated and ventilated and both bathrooms and kitchens must be of suitable size and layout.

However, for 5 or more occupiers, the regulations are much tighter. In these cases, the rules say there must be one separate toilet (which should also have a hand wash basin) and at least separate one bathroom for every 5 occupiers.

Even worse, the rules go on to say that for 5 or more occupiers, each "unit of living accommodation" must contain a washbasin or sink.

Another area to look out for - and which affects all HMOs of any size, is to check your electrical certification is up to date.  These must be done every 5 years, and the local authority will generally demand to look at your certificate.

The killer issue

Readers will note that the requirement to have a separate wash hand basin in each unit of accommodation as well as another one in a shared loo for properties with 5 or more occupiers is the real killer issue here.

According to the Residential Landlords' Association (RLA), the local authorities - who are responsible for licensing - can't see the point of this. Neither apparently can the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Officers - the professional body for the enforcing officials.

In fact there was such surprise at the rules when they were published that the RLA and other landlords' organisations actually sought clarification from the Government as to what was meant by a "unit of accommodation."

The answer came back - unit of accommodation DOES (in this sense) mean a bedroom. So, the regulations definitely mean that if there are 5 or more occupiers in an HMO, then in theory at least each bedroom should have their own wash basin in addition to the one in the loo.

The RLA goes on to report that Leeds City Council was curious enough to mail shot colleagues at local authorities throughout the country.

Apparently, fifty seven said they didn't agree with this. Just three supported it - 'because it was the law' - these three were presumably citing the "just obeying orders" defence!

All very bad news of course unless you happen to be a landlord with a sideline in plumbing!

However, there is a ray of sunshine. Leeds City Councillors decided that, because HMO licences last for five years, landlords would not actually have to fit the basins until the end of that time - which should give time for the issue to be reconsidered (and possibly revoked) when the Act comes up for review in three years time. Chris Town, who is chairman of the RLA, points out that, "The Housing Act gives local authorities the power to do this and we're hoping that (other local authorities) will follow suit."   So, if you live in the area covered by Leeds City Council you will be OK for now and can put the plumber on hold.  

Check with your Local Authority

Landlords elsewhere should check with their local authority and see exactly what approach is being taken locally as local councils do have a degree of flexibility.

In the meantime, landlords can only hope that the requirement for wash basins in each room is watered down or revoked in three years time. 

If not, the plumbing business looks a good bet because there will be a huge job putting wash basins in each room and then another big job taking them all out again if and when a house reverts back to family accommodation.

Contacts

Residential Landlords Association: www.rla.co.uk 0161 962 0010