A guide to your responsibilities as a landlord

This article was updated in April 2026 to include information about the Renters’ Rights Act.

Taking the leap to become a landlord by renting out your property can be a daunting prospect. To be a responsible landlord, there are several important steps you should take before your tenant walks through the door, and throughout their tenancy.

Enjoy our guide to the seven main responsibilities that rest on the shoulders of landlords in the UK.

Skip ahead:

Legal considerations
Licenses
Repairs and maintenance
Deposits
Safety
Energy efficiency
Access and tenants' rights

1. Legal considerations

For both landlords and tenants to enjoy the benefits of renting a property, a set of rules, regulations and laws has developed over time. These rules are designed to protect the rights of property owners and residents alike.

As a landlord in the UK, there are several different legal obligations you must observe so you can rent out your property to paying tenants.

Right to rent (England only)

Since 204, all landlords in England have been legally required to check that their prospective tenants have what’s known as the “right to rent”.

This measure was introduced to help crack down on illegal immigration. It means that anyone entering into a tenancy contract (written or unwritten) must be able to prove they have the right to live in the country.

Those with a right to rent in England include all UK and Irish citizens and holders of:

A British or Irish passport
A Biometric Residence Permit (BRP)
A valid visa
Documentation showing “proof of settlement status granted”

Legally, it is the landlord’s responsibility to run these checks on prospective tenants. This includes checking the relevant documentation. You can hand over this responsibility to a lettings agency for a fee, but it is wise to ask for proof from the agency that they’ve completed the checks, as the liability for failing to do so rests with you.

Landlords in Wales and Scotland don’t need to check their tenants' right to rent.

Discrimination

When it comes to accepting or rejecting tenancy applications, you must always treat every applicant fairly. When conducting background checks, you’re not allowed to be selective about who is checked and who isn’t on any prejudicial grounds.

It’s not just the right thing to do; it’s also a legal obligation. In the UK, landlords are legally obliged not to discriminate against prospective tenants on any of the following grounds:

Race or ethnicity
Nationality
Length of residency in the UK
English language skills

From May 2026, landlords and letting agents in England will also be legally prohibited from rejecting applicants solely because they receive benefits or have children.

Blanket policies like “no DSS” or “no kids” are unlawful under the Renters’ Rights Act, and breaches could result in civil penalties of up to £7,000.

2. Licenses

The issue of licensing landlords is a complex one in the UK. Your responsibilities as a landlord change depending on where in the UK your rental property is.

Wales

In Wales, every residential landlord must register with Rent Smart Wales. The cheapest way to apply for a license is online, but paper applications are also available.

The license is valid for five years and costs up to £102. As a first-time landlord, if you manage the letting yourself and not through an agency, you’ll also have to complete approximately five hours of online training, costing an additional £35.

Northern Ireland

There are no licenses that apply across the whole of Northern Ireland. This said, landlords must enter information on both themselves and their property into the Landlord Registration Scheme, for a one-off cost of £70.

If you rent out a house in multiple occupation (HMO), then there’s a separate register you must join.

Scotland

There are also no specific licenses in Scotland per se, but every landlord must register themselves and each of their properties with the local council, and your details will be entered into the Scottish Landlord register.

Joining the register is compulsory and costs £82, plus an additional £19 per property, with registration lasting for three years. It’s important to remember to keep your registration up to date, as renting out a property while unregistered can lead to a fine of up to £50,000.

England

The situation in England is a little more complicated. There are no nationwide licenses or registers that apply to all landlords and properties.

Since 2018, all houses in multiple occupation (HMOs), defined as a property with five or more people, forming two or more households, must be licensed with the local council. The cost of the license varies depending on the council, usually between £500 and £1,000, and are valid for five years in most cases.

The situation then gets more complex with the issue of “selective licensing”. All councils are allowed to introduce selective licensing in addition to HMO licenses in specific areas. There are over 500 of these schemes in operation across more than 50 local councils around England.

The best way to know if you need an extra selective license is to contact your local council.

3. Repairs and maintenance

One of the most common areas of responsibility for a landlord is the maintenance, upkeep and repair of the property itself. In general, a landlord is responsible for the upkeep of, and repairs to the general structure and exterior of the property, including the:

Roof
Walls
Drains
Guttering
Drainpipes
Windows
External doors
Foundations

What you’re responsible for as the landlord, when it comes to maintenance and repairs, depends on the tenancy agreement. In a furnished property, the landlord is responsible for the maintenance of all the fixtures and fittings, appliances, furniture and white goods that are supplied on the property’s inventory.

In an unfurnished home, the landlord will, in most cases, only be responsible for the fixtures and fittings. The cost of repairing these fixtures and fittings can sometimes accumulate over time, and so landlord insurance bought through Superscript can include fixtures and fittings cover as standard.

Under the Renters’ Rights Act, further minimum standards will be introduced through the Decent Homes Standard and Awaab’s Law. These will require landlords to address serious hazards — like damp and mould — within legally defined timeframes, rather than “within a reasonable period”.

These parts of the Renters’ Rights Act don’t yet have an implementation date. Despite there not being a legal requirement just yet, it’s best practice to tackle issues like damp and mould quickly. This not only helps you keep your tenants healthy and happy, but also protects your investment.

4. Deposits

In most tenancy agreements, a tenant will pay you, the landlord, a deposit (often equivalent to one month’s rent). Legally, you’re not allowed to hold a cash deposit yourself, but must instead hand the deposit over to an independent protection scheme.

At the end of the tenancy, the tenant must receive their deposit back within 10 days if they haven’t broken their tenancy agreement or caused any damage to the property.

If you believe your tenants are responsible for any damage, then you’re allowed to dispute the return of the deposit and the money is held by the protection scheme until the matter is settled.

In England and Wales, you can use one of three independent protection schemes:

There are separate schemes available in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

5. Safety

Perhaps the most significant area of responsibility for a landlord is safety.

You are ultimately responsible for making sure the property is safe for the tenants to live in. This includes electric, gas and fire safety measures.

Your responsibilities are laid out clearly by the government. These rules must be followed so you can keep your tenants safe and avoid being held liable for any injury or damage.

You must make sure:

Gas safety

All the gas equipment in the property is installed and maintained by a Gas Safety Register-listed engineer, and they must perform an annual gas safety inspection of every appliance
Your tenants have a copy of the gas safety check record within 28 days of any checks taking place

Electrical safety

All electrical systems and fixed appliances are checked and certified by a qualified electrician at least every five years
Your tenants have a copy of the EICR certificate within 28 days of any checks taking place, as well as to the local authority if they request it
Any appliances you supply are safe to use via portable appliance testing (PAT)

Fire safety

You provide a smoke alarm on each storey of the building
You install a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a solid fuel burning appliance, like a coal fire, wood burning stove or fireplace
That tenants have access to safe escape routes at all times
The furniture and soft furnishings that you supply are fire-safe
You provide fire extinguishers in large properties and HMOs

These responsibilities are the legal minimum that is expected of you, but it is best practice to also provide fire extinguishers and fire blankets in any home, regardless of the size.

While it is usually only a legal requirement for HMOs, it’s best practice to conduct a fire safety risk assessment in every property. This will allow you to identify possible causes of fires and highlight potential hazards your tenants might face.

6. Energy efficiency

As a landlord, it’s your responsibility to ensure that your property meets minimum energy efficiency standards. This helps your tenants save money on their energy bills and lowers your property’s carbon footprint.

Every 10 years, you have to make sure your property is inspected and rated for its energy efficiency by an accredited domestic energy assessor. They will grade the property on a scale of A to G for its energy efficiency and issue an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).

Since April 2020, all rental properties have had to meet grade E as a minimum. You could be fined if you don’t take action to improve your efficiency rating if it’s assessed as grade F or below. You can find an accredited energy assessor using the government’s EPC register.

7. Access and tenants' rights

Finally, a big part of being a landlord is knowing how to respect your tenants’ privacy. It may be your house, but it’s their home.

Even if it is not stated in your tenancy agreement, your tenants have an implied right to what is known as “quiet enjoyment” of the property, without unnecessary interruption by landlord visits or excessive noise from improvement works.

In the majority of cases, you will be required to give tenants 24 hours’ notice if you want to access the property to inspect the condition of the home.

Also, as a courtesy, you should aim to give your tenants as much notice as possible of any planned improvements to the building, taking into account they might need to work from home or care for children, for example.

In summary

So, there you have it, a guide to the seven main responsibilities of being a landlord in the UK.

To get the most out of your experience of being a landlord, keep a close eye on your responsibilities and ensure you are taking all the appropriate steps needed to keep your property and tenants safe and secure.

If anything does go wrong, however, then landlord insurance is designed to cover the various elements of damage and personal liabilities you might face as a property owner.