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This Act gave tenants in England a powerful new tool. Before 2019, the test of whether a home was "fit for human habitation" had been almost unusable. The 2018 Act fixed that.
What "unfit for human habitation" means
A home is unfit if it fails on one or more of these criteria:
- Repair (Section 11 breach)
- Stability (structural defects)
- Freedom from damp
- Internal arrangement (layout)
- Natural lighting
- Ventilation
- Water supply (suitable for drinking)
- Drainage and sanitary conveniences
- Cooking facilities, including disposal of waste water
- Any of the 29 dangers on the government's official list of things that make a home unsafe (its full name is the Housing Health and Safety Rating System, or HHSRS)
That list includes damp and mould, the home being too cold, fire risks, falls, carbon monoxide, electrical dangers, the building falling apart, and more.
Why this Act matters
Before 2019, tenants had to rely on Section 11 alone. Section 11 doesn't cover everything, for example, persistent damp where the structure is technically sound.
The Fitness for Human Habitation Act fills the gap. If your home is genuinely unfit, you can claim regardless of whether the cause fits the narrow Section 11 categories.
Direct claim route
You don't need to wait for Environmental Health to issue a notice. You can claim directly.
What you can recover
- An order requiring the landlord to make the property fit
- Compensation for the period you lived in an unfit home
- Damages for damaged belongings
- Damages for personal injury where applicable
The Welsh equivalent
The Renting Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) (Wales) Regulations 2022 perform a similar function in Wales, see /wales.