Jacky Peacock, a Labour party member and founder of Fairer Housing CIC, has called for the government to introduce a legal requirement for landlords to arrange regular inspections of private rented homes for damp and mould.
Writing in LabourList, Ms Peacock suggests that these inspections should be carried out by professionals trained in the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS). Certificates from these inspections would then be uploaded to the new Private Rented Sector (PRS) Database.
The government is set to begin a regional rollout of the PRS Database in December. Landlords will be required to register their properties and pay an annual fee of £65 per property, which Ms Peacock claims could help fund local council enforcement work.
Ms Peacock argues that current enforcement of PRS conditions is reactive and under-resourced. She notes that while landlords are required to evidence some health and safety elements like gas and electrical checks, there are no current requirements to check for damp and mould or other hazards identified under the HHSRS.