Rent with Confidence – The Rental Standard – The West of England Rent with Confidence Accreditation Scheme

Requirements

As an accredited member of the West of England Rent with Confidence Scheme, you have agreed to sign up to the Rental Standard.

The Rental Standard is a framework for landlords & agents and includes a checklist of the minimum property standards. It also sets out the responsibilities of tenants towards their rented property and what they can expect from their landlord.

For Landlords

Comply with all statutory requirements related to the letting of properties in the private rented sector as set nationally and by the Local Authority
Landlords and Agents must not discriminate either directly or indirectly against tenants or prospective tenants on the basis of a protected characteristic. Protected characteristics are defined under the Equalities Act 2010 and include: age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.
A written tenancy agreement provided with required information. See example
Discuss tenancy options at the outset of a tenancy. At the end of a fixed term, where requested and appropriate, tenancy length to be finalised into another fixed term rather than default into a periodic tenancy.
Retaliatory evictions will not be carried out as a result of a tenant’s reasonable request for repairs.
Tenants to be given a minimum of 24 hours’ notice of the need to access their home, except in the event of an emergency.
Use of a government approved Tenancy Deposit Protection scheme where a deposit taken. No deposit to be taken which is equivalent to more than five weeks rent if the total annual rent for the property is less than £50,000 or six weeks rent if the total annual rent is more than £50,000.
Rent not to be increased more often than every 12 months.
Agree a schedule of condition and an inventory (photographic or written) with the Tenant at the start of the tenancy and provide a copy to the Tenant.
As a guide ensure hat all repairs are completed promptly in line with West of England Code of Good Management Practice:
Emergency repairs: 24 hours (Affecting health or safety e.g. dangerous electrical fault, blocked WC, no hot water, etc.)
Urgent repairs: 5 working days (Affecting material comfort e.g. no heating or fridge failure, serious roof leak, etc.)
Other non-urgent repairs: 20 working days.
Having regard to the suitability of the accommodation provided where appropriate, welcome tenants with children or other dependents.
Explain to the tenant the Letting Agent or any other party’s role in the management of the property.
Meets our minimum property standard (see checklist below).
Fit and Proper Person declaration completed.
A commitment to undertake regular training to keep up to date with relevant laws.

For Letting Professionals

Where applicable, meet the same standards as set out above for Landlords and as Letting and Managing Agents acting on behalf of a Landlords, comply with all obligations as above as well as all statutory obligations relating to the letting of their property.
Membership of an approved Agents Redress Scheme and advertising of any fees.
Membership of a Client Money Protection Scheme and notice of scheme membership on your website.
Compliance with trading laws and the Competition and Markets Authority Guidance for Letting Professionals.

For Tenants

Act in accordance with their tenancy agreement and have the right to rent in England.
To take care to look after the property including, keeping it suitably heated and ventilated and reporting repairs promptly.
Communicate and co-operate with any reasonable requests from the landlord, agent or their contractors; including arranging appropriate access within normal working hours to carry out repairs, planned maintenance and other works to comply with Health & Safety requirements.
As with any home occupier, live as a good neighbour, be considerate regarding noise, rubbish, and parking.

West of England minimum property standards

If your answer is in a grey shaded box the property may not meet the minimum legal requirements so you should take action to make sure the property is compliant with the law. This checklist is a guide only and we recommend that you check there are no additional requirements necessary specific to the property.			X
Planning	Do you have the correct planning permission for the current use of the property? Some shared houses may need planning permission.	Yes or N/A	No
EPC	Does the property have a current Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)?	Yes or N/A	No
	Is the EPC band A to E inclusive?	Yes or N/A	No
Heating	Does the property have a fixed heating system (i.e. central heating and radiators, or storage heaters) in working order, with sufficient power output to heat all bedrooms and any lounges, a timer or programmer and a device to control room temperature – e.g. thermostat?	Yes	No
	Is the heating easily controllable by the tenant?	Yes	No
Food safety	Does the property have adequate; hot and cold water, a surface to prepare food, food storage and provision for cooking and refrigeration?	Yes	No
Insulation	Do the windows and doors appear to be in good repair and free from excessive draughts?	Yes	No
	If there is a loft or loft room is it insulated sufficiently, (100mm minimum if central heating or 200mm minimum if electric heating)?	Yes or N/A	No
Fire	If there are shared communal parts (Halls Stair landings, shared Kitchens or Living rooms etc.) a written Fire Safety Risk Assessment is required. Has a written Fire Safety Risk Assessment been completed?	Yes or N/A	No
	For houses occupied by a family - Does the property have a mains operated fire alarm system, or 10 year life sealed battery smoke detectors in hallways and landings on each level?	Yes or N/A	No
	For 3 storey family houses – does the property have mains wired interlinked smoke detectors located in the ground floor hall, first floor landing and second floor landing?	Yes or N/A	No
	For shared houses or bedsit accommodation – Do fire precautions meet requirements of your local authority?	Yes or N/A	No
Gas	Is there a satisfactory current Landlord Gas Safety certificate for the gas installation and all gas appliances provided? Expiry date:	Yes	No
Solid fuel/Oil	Evidence of servicing and maintenance of all solid fuel appliances by a HETAS/OFTEC engineer within the last 12 months.	Yes or N/A	No
	Is there a Carbon Monoxide alarm in each room with a solid fuel appliance?	Yes or N/A	No
Electricity	In the last 5 years has the property had a current satisfactory electrical condition report which indicates that the property is free from dangerous or potentially dangerous faults ie no C1 or C2 codes and any FI codes have been further investigated and actioned ? Expiry Date:	Yes	No
	On a visual inspection of the electrical installation and appliances, is the installation free of any obvious hazards such as broken or loose sockets, burn marks, unavoidable overloading, exposed wires or live conductors, cracked or broken light pendants, sockets too close to water.	Yes	No
Electrical appliances	Is all electrical equipment supplied with the accommodation safe? If it complies with an acceptable standard, such as a British / European standard, it will normally meet safety requirements. You must take all reasonable precautions to ensure that electrical equipment is safe and correctly labelled. It is strongly advisable to have the equipment checked by a qualified electrician before the start of each let and it would be good practice to have the equipment checked at regular intervals thereafter. You should obtain and retain test reports detailing the equipment, the tests carried out and the results. You should make a copy of the instructions for all electrical appliances available to the tenant.	Yes	No
Security	Do the windows and doors appear to be in a good condition and can they be adequately secured?	Yes	No
Condensation & Mould	Is there sufficient ventilation in the kitchen, bedrooms, living room and bathroom (An operable window or mechanical extract fan in a kitchen or bathroom and secure openable windows for lounges, other reception rooms and bedrooms in all cases.	Yes	No
	Is the property free of extensive black mould growth in any room?	Yes	No
Personal Hygiene	Is there at least one inside flushing toilet in working condition?	Yes	No
	Is there a wash hand basin with hot and cold running water in the same room as each toilet?	Yes	No
	Is there at least one bath with hot and cold running water or a shower cubicle with a working shower?	Yes	No
Furniture and appliances	Does any furniture and soft furnishings supplied comply with the legal fire resistant standard? E.g. Sofas, mattresses must have labels proving they comply.	Yes or N/A	No
	Do any blinds or shutters supplied with the accommodation meet the relevant British Standard? The key standards are; - All existing blinds must be fitted with a custom safety device. - All cords and chains should be fitted with safety devices at the point of manufacture and supply. - Cord and chain lengths must end 1.5 metres above the floor to keep out of reach of children. - Cords and chains should not form a loop shape in properties where children under 42 months will be dwelling	Yes	No
	Are all items supplied safe? All products must comply with the General Product Safety Regulations 2005. Examples; if manufacturers indicate that wardrobes, chest of drawers, book cases etc. should be secured to a wall this is to be followed, lawnmowers and trimmers should have guards in place	Yes or N/A	No
Falls	Is the property free from tripping and falling hazards? E.g. Stairs with no hand rails, raised and uneven floor surfaces, windows that should have window restrictors to prevent falls.	Yes	No
Asbestos	Where there are any Asbestos containing materials that you need to manage have you taken steps to make sure they are safe?	Yes or N/A	No
Repair	Is the property in a reasonable state of repair?	Yes	No
HMO	If the house or flat is shared by 3 people, forming more than 1 household; is it well managed (decoration, cleanliness, maintenance, equipment and facilities in good working order, common parts free from obstruction)?	Yes or N/A	No
	Are there an adequate number of amenities for the number of occupiers (i.e. bathrooms, toilets and kitchens)? Please note it is a criminal offence if HMO Management Regulations are not met unless the manager has a reasonable excuse.	Yes or N/A	No
Licensing (mandatory)	If the house or flat is occupied by five or more people forming 2 or more households who share facilities with others then it is likely to require a licence. If yes do you have or have you applied for a licence?	Yes or N/A	No
Licensing (discretionary)	If the accommodation is within an area subject to a discretionary licensing scheme, does it need a licence? If yes, do you have or have you applied for a licence?	Yes or N/A	No
Overcrowding	Will the number of people occupying meet the bedroom standard? One bedroom for up to two persons, two bedrooms for up to four persons, three bedrooms for up to six persons or four bedrooms for up to seven persons.	Yes	No
	Is the living area big enough space for the household occupying to carry out normal activities including space for a child to carry out educational activities like homework?	Yes	No
	Do the bedrooms meet or exceed an area of 6.51 m2 (Single) and 10.22m2 (for 2 persons)	Yes	No
Legionella	Assessment of the risk from exposure to Legionella to ensure the safety of their tenants carried out. See Health and Safety Executive Guidance.	Yes	No
Ponds	If a pond is present either fill in or provide a safety grid covering the whole pond that will hold the weight of a person without caving in.	Yes	No