The Renters' Rights Act and repairs: what has actually changed for tenants?

Most of the attention on the Renters' Rights Act 2025 has focused on Section 21 abolition. That change, ending no-fault evictions for private tenants, is significant and rightly covered extensively. But the Act also made changes that affect repair rights and habitability standards. Those changes are less well understood.

The Decent Homes Standard now applies to private rentals

Before the Renters' Rights Act, the Decent Homes Standard, the baseline of what a habitable home should look like, applied only to social housing. The Act extends it to the private rented sector for the first time.

The Decent Homes Standard requires that a home is free from Category 1 hazards under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System, in a reasonable state of repair, has reasonably modern facilities, and provides a reasonable degree of thermal comfort.

In practical terms, this means private landlords now have a stronger and clearer statutory duty to maintain their properties to a standard that goes beyond what Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 required alone.

Councils have new enforcement powers

The Act gives local councils stronger powers to investigate and act on complaints about private rented homes. Councils can now more readily issue improvement notices and take enforcement action against landlords who allow properties to fall below the Decent Homes Standard.

For tenants, this is significant. It means the council enforcement route, contacting environmental health and requesting a Housing Health and Safety Rating System inspection, is now backed by clearer legal authority.

Section 21 abolition: the repair link

The abolition of Section 21 matters for repairs not just because it removes the fear of retaliatory eviction, but because it changes the dynamic in a practical way.

Before abolition, many private tenants hesitated to complain about repairs because they feared receiving a Section 21 notice in response. That concern is now removed for new tenancies. Tenants can report disrepair, request council inspections, and pursue claims without the shadow of a no-fault eviction.

The Deregulation Act 2015 protections against retaliatory eviction, which applied under the old Section 21 regime, are no longer needed in the same way, but the principle carries forward into the new framework.

What has not changed

A number of things remain the same.

Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 still applies. Your landlord's duty to keep the structure, exterior, heating and plumbing in repair has not changed.

The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 still applies. You can still take your landlord to court directly if your home is unfit to live in.

The Housing Health and Safety Rating System still applies. Council environmental health teams still inspect using HHSRS. Category 1 hazards still trigger mandatory action.

Awaab's Law still applies only to social housing. Private tenants are not yet covered by its specific deadlines.

What tenants should do now

If you rent privately and your home has unresolved repair issues, the new legal landscape is more favourable than it was. You can:

• Report disrepair to your landlord in writing
• Request a Housing Health and Safety Rating System inspection from your council
• Pursue a claim under the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act or Section 11 without the threat of a no-fault eviction in response

If you are unsure about your position or want to know whether your situation gives rise to a claim, call 0800 030 4669 for free advice.

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.

Support For Tenants is a trading name of Cyntex Group Ltd, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority as a Claims Management Company. FRN 1020217. Registered in England and Wales.