The England rule set

Every obligation Wellkempt tracks comes from this versioned rule set. Rules change — commencement dates move, forms get replaced, thresholds drop — so the honest thing is to show you exactly what version you're being checked against and when a human last verified it.

Version

1.4.0

Last verified

2026-08-08

Rules

• Right to rent follow-up check

  This occupier's right to rent is time-limited. A follow-up check is due before the recorded expiry (or within the statutory grace period) — record the re-check as a service event with dated evidence.

  Immigration Act 2014, ss. 22–37; Code of Practice (7th ed., from 1 Oct 2026)

• Damp & mould responsepolicy, not yet law

  Awaab's Law timescales (social housing since Oct 2025) applied as practice: investigate within 10 working days of the report, written summary within 3 more, works under way within 5 more. Not yet law for the PRS — but running the discipline now builds the evidence trail that will matter when it is. Mark the incident resolved to stop the clocks.

  Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 (Awaab's Law); PRS extension pending (RRA roadmap Phase 3)

• PRS database registrationpolicy, not yet law

  Mandatory landlord/property registration rolls out regionally from late 2026 (nationwide through 2027). Being unregistered is expensive in three separate ways: a council civil penalty up to £7,000 for a first breach and up to £40,000 for repeated breaches or fraudulent information (or prosecution); no possession order except on anti-social behaviour grounds; and a tenant rent repayment order of up to 24 months' rent. Date and fee are provisional until MHCLG publishes them. Once you register, record the number and renewal date on the property.

  Renters' Rights Act 2025, Part 2 (commencement pending)

• Gas safety check (LGSR)

  Annual check of every gas appliance and flue by a Gas Safe registered engineer. A copy of the record must reach existing tenants within 28 days, and new tenants before they move in.

  Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, reg. 36

• Electrical safety inspection (EICR)

  Electrical installation condition report at least every 5 years by a qualified person. Supply a copy to tenants within 28 days of the inspection, and to new tenants before occupation.

  Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, reg. 3

• EICR remedial work

  The latest EICR is unsatisfactory: remedial or further investigative work must be completed within 28 days (or any shorter period the report specifies). Written confirmation from the electrician then goes to the tenants AND to the local authority within 28 days. Separately, a council can demand the report itself within 7 days of asking.

  Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, reg. 3(4)

• Energy Performance Certificate

  A valid EPC (10-year life) is required to let the property, and a copy must be given to tenants at the start of the tenancy.

  Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations 2012, reg. 6

• Annual damp, mould and fire risk review

  A recorded annual check for damp, mould and fire hazards. Not a standalone statutory certificate, but the record is your evidence of hazard awareness under HHSRS and fitness-for-habitation duties — and positions you for Awaab's Law when it extends to the PRS.

  Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018; Housing Act 2004 (HHSRS)

• Protect the deposit

  The deposit must be protected in an authorised scheme within 30 days of receipt. Since 1 May 2026 non-compliance also blocks possession on nearly all Section 8 grounds, on top of the 1–3× penalty.

  Housing Act 2004, ss. 212–215 (as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025)

• Serve deposit prescribed information

  Prescribed information about the deposit's protection must reach the tenant and any relevant person (e.g. a guarantor who paid it) within 30 days of receiving the deposit.

  Housing Act 2004, s. 213(5)–(6); Housing (Tenancy Deposits) (Prescribed Information) Order 2007

• Right to rent checks

  Check every adult occupier's right to rent before the tenancy starts (manual, Home Office online, or — from 1 Oct 2026 — a registered digital verification provider). Keep dated copies of the evidence. From 1 October 2026 a digital check must go through a certified provider on the government's register, but digital is optional: original documents and the Home Office online service both continue unchanged.

  Immigration Act 2014, ss. 22–37

• Written statement of terms

  For tenancies from 1 May 2026 a written statement of prescribed terms must be given before the tenancy is entered into, including prior notice of possession grounds like moving back in (Ground 1) or selling (Ground 1A), which are lost if not flagged. Separately, the government's Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet 2026 (published 20 March 2026) must be given to the tenant. Together these replace the withdrawn How to Rent guide.

  Housing Act 1988, s. 16D (inserted by the Renters' Rights Act 2025); SI 2026/324

• Section 48 address for notices

  Rent is not lawfully due until the tenant has been given an address in England and Wales at which notices can be served on you. Usually satisfied inside the tenancy agreement — record where yours appears.

  Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, s. 48

• Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms

  A smoke alarm on every storey used as living accommodation, and a CO alarm in every room with a fixed combustion appliance other than a gas cooker (so boilers, gas fires and wood burners count, the hob does not). All checked working on the first day of the tenancy, and repaired or replaced as soon as reasonably practicable once a fault is reported. Record the day-one check.

  Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 (as amended 2022)

• Rent increase: last day to serve (Section 13)

  The last day to post a Section 13 notice (Form 4A) and have the new rent start on the earliest lawful date — two months' notice from deemed service, starting on a rent-period day, no sooner than 12 months after rent was last set. Serve later and the start slips one rent period. An opportunity marker, not a duty; Wellkempt emails a reminder before the window closes.

  Housing Act 1988, s. 13 (as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025)

• Energy efficiency: EPC C by October 2030policy, not yet law

  Government-confirmed policy (Jan 2026): rented homes must reach EPC C equivalent by 1 Oct 2030, £10,000 cost cap, judged against reformed EPC metrics. Not yet law — the amending regulations are expected in 2027 — so treat as direction of travel.

  Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 (amendment expected 2027)

Changelog

• 1.4.02026-08-08

  Re-checked every rule against published guidance (8 Aug 2026). Corrections: the EICR remedial step now states that written confirmation goes to the local authority as well as the tenants, and that a council can demand the report within 7 days; the written-statement bundle now names the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet 2026 (published 20 Mar 2026) as a separate item; the alarm rule now states the gas-cooker exception and the repair duty; the right-to-rent rule now makes clear that digital verification through a certified provider is optional from 1 Oct 2026, not compulsory. Section 13, deposit protection and prescribed information, gas, EICR intervals, EPC, MEES, PRS database and Awaab's Law status were all confirmed unchanged. NOTE: this check was carried out against published guidance by an automated review, not by a solicitor; practitioner sign-off is still outstanding.

• 1.2.02026-08-04

  Changed: the Section 13 marker now shows the last day to SERVE (first-class post, deemed service and two-month minimum worked backwards from the earliest lawful start) instead of the date an increase becomes possible, and rolls to the next rent period once passed.

• 1.1.02026-07-30

  Added: right-to-rent follow-up for time-limited statuses; damp & mould response clocks (Awaab's Law practice standard — provisional, not yet law for the PRS); PRS database registration tracking (provisional — regional rollout expected from late 2026, renewal tracked once registered).

• 1.0.02026-07-29

  Initial England set: gas, EICR (incl. remedial follow-up), EPC, smoke/CO alarms, deposit protection + prescribed information, right to rent, written statement of terms, s.48 address, annual damp & mould review, Section 13 eligibility marker, MEES 2030 (provisional).

Compliance information, not legal advice.