Housing Disrepair Claims

What your landlord must repair

Almost every tenancy in England carries repairing duties that the landlord cannot contract out of. The most important come from section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. It requires the landlord to keep in repair:

• the structure and exterior of the home, including walls, roof, windows, external doors, drains, gutters and external pipes;
• the installations for the supply of water, gas and electricity;
• the installations for sanitation, including basins, sinks, baths and toilets; and
• the installations for heating rooms and heating water.

If you live in a flat, the duty extends to the common parts and to installations that serve your home, as long as your landlord owns or controls them.

A home that is fit to live in

The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 added a second, wider duty. The home must be fit for human habitation when the tenancy starts and stay that way. A court looks at things like damp, ventilation, natural light, water supply, drainage, facilities for cooking, and the 29 hazards in the Housing Health and Safety Rating System, which include excess cold, falls, fire and pests.

This matters because some serious problems are not "disrepair" in the strict sense. Condensation caused by the design of a building is the classic example. Under the fitness duty, the landlord can still be made to deal with it.

Awaab's Law

Since 27 October 2025, council and housing association landlords have had to investigate and fix damp, mould and emergency hazards within fixed timescales. From 30 November 2026 the same timescales apply to a wider list of hazards, including excess cold, electrical faults, falls, fire, structural collapse and pests. Our guide to Awaab's Law sets out the deadlines.

When the landlord becomes liable

For defects inside your home, the landlord is liable only once they know about the problem and have failed to repair it within a reasonable time. That is why reporting in writing is so important. What is reasonable depends on how serious the problem is: hours for an emergency, a few weeks for routine repairs.

For defects in parts of the building the landlord keeps control of, such as a shared roof or communal pipes, the landlord can be liable from the moment the defect arises.

What is not covered

• Damage caused by you, your household or your visitors.
• Your own appliances and furniture.
• Improvements. A landlord does not have to modernise a home that is in repair and fit to live in.
• Minor decoration, unless it was damaged by disrepair or by the repair works.

What you can claim

A claim asks for two things. The first is an order for the works, known as specific performance. The second is damages: compensation for the loss of comfort and use of your home, for damaged belongings, for extra costs such as heating, and for any injury to health. See how much compensation you could claim.

Time limits

You normally have six years to bring a claim for breach of the repairing duties, and three years for any personal injury element. Children have until their 21st birthday to claim for injury. Do not wait: evidence is strongest while the problem is still there to be inspected.

Other routes, and how they fit

A legal claim is not the only option, and it can run alongside others. Social housing tenants can use their landlord's complaints process and then the Housing Ombudsman. Private tenants can ask Haringey Council's private sector housing team to inspect and serve an improvement notice. Neither route will usually win you the same level of compensation as a claim, but both can add pressure and create useful evidence.

Ready to take the next step? Read how to make a housing disrepair claim.