Housing improvement notice: what it means for tenants

When the council's environmental health team inspects your home and finds serious hazards, it can serve a formal notice making your landlord act. Its main tool is the improvement notice under the Housing Act 2004. Here is what one means for you.

What is a housing improvement notice?

An improvement notice is served on the landlord, requiring set work to fix a hazard found under the HHSRS. It states:

• The hazards found
• The works to fix each
• The start date, at least 28 days from service
• The finish date

They are used most for Category 1 hazards: the ones posing serious risk to health or safety.

When can the council serve an improvement notice?

For a Category 1 hazard the council MUST act, and the improvement notice is the usual route, unless emergency remedial action or a prohibition order fits better. For Category 2, serving one is the council's choice.

What does this mean for the tenant?

The notice puts legal pressure on the landlord. Key points:

• It goes to the landlord; you usually get a copy
• The landlord must comply. Ignoring it is a criminal offence
• Works left undone can be done by the council, which then bills the landlord
• The notice itself brings no compensation, but its evidence can be gold in a disrepair claim

Can the landlord appeal against an improvement notice?

Yes: to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber), within 28 days. An appeal can pause the notice while heard, and you as tenant can put your side to the Tribunal.

Can I ask the council to issue an improvement notice?

You can ask the environmental health team to inspect. They decide whether to, and what follows, from what they find. You cannot force a notice, but a formal inspection request is the right first step.

Can the landlord evict me after an improvement notice?

The law protects you. With Section 21 no-fault eviction abolished by the Renters' Rights Act 2025, no landlord can end your tenancy just for a complaint, or because the council served a notice. They must prove a legal ground, and a ground that is really payback can be challenged at the hearing, with the improvement notice as strong evidence.

For pre-abolition Section 21 notices still in the system, the Deregulation Act 2015 protections may bite: a notice served after your written complaint and the council's improvement notice can be invalid. Get advice on anything served before the law changed.

When should I contact Support for Tenants?

Has the council served an improvement notice on your home? The evidence inside can carry a disrepair claim. Call us to find out whether you have one.

Call us on 0800 030 4669. No upfront cost. You only pay if you win, and the fee comes out of the compensation, not your pocket. If you don't win, you pay nothing.

Sources

• Housing Act 2004 (legislation.gov.uk)
• Housing Health and Safety Rating System Regulations 2005 (legislation.gov.uk)
• Renters' Rights Act 2025 (legislation.gov.uk)

Related articles

• HHSRS Category 1 hazard explained