29 November 2018
Minimum standards for rental accommodation come into force on Saturday 1 December, following the signing of a Ministerial Order by the Minister for the Environment, Deputy John Young.
The Public Health and Safety Order lists the minimum requirements that landlords must meet in order to make sure that their properties do not pose a risk of harm to the health and safety of their tenants.
From 1 December, landlords also have a legal obligation to:
- install a smoke alarm on every storey
- install a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with an oil, gas, wood or coal heater
- ensure the alarms are kept in full working order
- ensure that gas and electricity supplies pass annual inspections.
The order also gives Environmental Health officers the power to enter premises to assess the risk of harm from any hazards that are present, and to take immediate action if the tenant is deemed to be at an imminent risk of serious harm.
Deputy Young said: “These changes are vital and long overdue. It’s important that tenants are protected from hazardous and unsafe accommodation. Although these changes won’t solve all of Jersey’s housing problems, they will bring safety standards in line with other jurisdictions and will make sure that rented dwellings do not pose a risk of harm to those who live there.”
The signing of the order is part of ongoing work to improve rental standards in Jersey. Other work includes the tenancy deposit scheme and the recently launched Rent Safe scheme for landlord accreditation.
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