Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS)
The Housing Act 2004 introduced a new way for Local
Authorities to assess housing conditions in England and Wales. The
legislation replaces the old housing fitness standard and came into
force on 6 April 2006.
The risk assessment approach called the Housing Health and
Safety Rating System (HHSRS) enables Council Officers to identify
hazards in dwellings and to recommend works to remove or minimise
those hazards.
The HHSRS will be used to assess conditions in all private
properties including those that are owner occupied, rented to
single people and families and houses in multiple occupation.
(HMOs)
Properties will be assessed against 29 potential hazards, which
addresses deficiencies associated with excess cold, falls on
stairs, noise and damp and mould growth. The assessment method aims
to make homes healthier and safer and tackles hazards the fitness
standard could not deal with, or deals with inadequately.
When a hazard is identified in a property, two tests have to be
applied:
- What is the likelihood of a dangerous occurrence as a result of
the hazard?
- If there is a dangerous occurrence, what would be the likely
outcome?
The likelihood and the severity of the outcome combine to
generate a hazard score. Hazards scores are divided into 10 bands,
with band A being the most serious and band J the least serious.
Hazards which fall into bands A – C are called Category 1 hazards
and those in band D – J are category 2 hazards.
How is it enforced and that are the penalties?
If the Local Authority discovers a Category 1 hazard in a
property, it has to take the most appropriate course of action. The
Council also has a discretionary power to deal with Category 2
hazards by means of enforcement action.
Local Authorities are advised to try and deal with issues
informally at first, however if unsuccessful the Council may be
left with no alternative but to pursue enforcement action, which
will involve the Council serving legal notices on the owner and /or
manager of the property, and require them to carry out certain
works in a specific time scale.
The Housing Act 2004 enables local authorities to make a
reasonable charge as a means of recovering certain expenses
incurred in the serving of notices. The expenses are in connection
with the inspection of premises, the subsequent consideration of
any action to be taken and any notices. Allerdale Borough Council
has set a minimum charge of £150 and will be based upon the
Council's costs including officer time, Land Registry fees and
mileage. However, the maximum charge for each notice is £500.
A property owner who feels an assessment is wrong can discuss
the matter with the inspector and ultimately will be able to
challenge an enforcement decision at the Residential Property
Tribunal
It is an offence not to comply with a statutory notice, which
could lead to a fine of up to £5000.
Landlord's Manual
The Landlord's Manual is a general guide giving landlords the
basic information they need to manage rented accommodation. A copy
can be downloaded from the downloadable documents section
below.
If you require more information/guidance as to
whether your property needs improvements to comply with HHSRS
requirements, please contact Allerdale Housing Services on 01900
702570 or email housing.services@allerdale.gov.uk