Electrical Responsibilities For Landlords

What are your responsibilities as landlords? We’re going to be looking at this today because if you don’t know what they are you’re putting yourself at risk of financial ruin and placing your tenants in danger. There’s the possibility of anything from fines for invalid insurance, and even worse, electrical fires and hazards for your tenants that could put you in prison. 

So, if you’re renting out property to tenants, whether it be apartments or houses, let’s look at what you need to be concerned about.

Safety and multiple occupation houses

All electrical installations in properties you rent out must be considered safe before your tenants move in. They must also remain in a safe condition for the duration of your tenants stay. A multiple occupation will need inspections every 5 years. 

Tests and inspections

If your rented house is not a multiple occupation then you won’t be legally obliged to have this carried out, but before you become too complacent it is recommended that you have a test and inspection carried out by a registered electrician every 5 years anyway. It will give you peace of mind and keep your tenants safe. 

Check everything and use a registered electrician

Checking every appliance you supply to your tenant is important, although obviously you won’t have to do this if the appliances belong to your tenants. Your own appliances however will need to be tested because they must have the CE mark required by European law. Basic safety checks are enough, and again we can’t stress enough how important it is for you to have these tests carried out by a qualified, registered electrician – because no matter how basic the tests are a professional could pick up something you’ve missed. 

External as well as internal checks and making sure you have working RCDs

Always make sure you check the outside of a property as well as the inside for electrical faults. You’ll need to check the RCDs to make sure your electrical installation and fuse box is safe for tenants. An RCD is essential because it can save lives by cutting out the power if there’s a live wire somewhere. If you touch a live wire you could die and RCDs, or residual current devices as they’re known, are easily the most important part of your electrical installation, keeping your tenants safe – so make sure you have them and that they’re in working order. 

Change of tenancy, check again

Whenever you have a change of tenancy you’ll need to check everything again before the next person moves in. If you carry out safety checks on a regular basis your tenants will have a safe tenancy under your care, and a regular safety check should automatically be part of any rental agreement. 

RML Electrical – Expert Electricians in West Lothian

Have any more questions? Perhaps you’d like to speak to one of our team and if you think you’d like to have one of your properties checked and you’re the landlord, then rest assured all of our electricians in West Lothian are both qualified and registered to carry out all electrical work – including safety checks. Get in touch today and put your mind at ease by complying with the law.