Landlord electrical safety deadline looms

As landlords met in Edinburgh this week for National Landlord Day 2015, SELECT has been raising awareness of the looming electrical safety deadline.

SELECT, the campaigning trade body for Scotland’s electrical sector, is reminding the private sector that from 1 December 2015, landlords are required to carry out five-yearly checks of fixed wiring and electrical appliances, with the checks needing to be undertaken by appropriately qualified people.

The trade body issued the reminder as the Scottish Association of Landlords held its eighth conference in Edinburgh on Tuesday.

Following the release of Scottish government statistics revealing that 69% of all accidental fires in Scottish homes are caused by electricity, the issue of electrical safety has become an important subject for landlords.

The Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 was recently amended to include statutory guidance on electrical installations and appliances in private rented property to make sure that a rented property meets the “Repairing Standard” at the start of and throughout any tenancy.

This includes a requirement for landlords to ensure that installations in the house for the supply of electricity, the electrical fixtures and fittings and any appliances provided by the landlord under the tenancy are in a reasonable state of repair and in proper working order.

Dave Forrester, Head of Technical Services at SELECT, said: “SELECT is participating in the National Landlord Day event to highlight the changes to the law which will affect all private sector landlords from December 1.

“The government’s guidance states that these checks must be conducted by appropriately skilled persons and lists SELECT as one of the organisations whose members meet this requirement.”

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