Rent Smart Wales, the regulatory body for the Welsh private rental sector, says a recent repossession case highlights the importance of being able to prove that minimum standards have been met.

The eviction notice in the case, involving a landlord in Neath, was deemed invalid by the court as there was no carbon monoxide (CO) detector in the property as required by the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016. 

The landlord argued that a CO detector was in place at the time the notice was served, but there was no photograph or paper trail to show a detector had been purchased or installed.

A statement from Rent Smart Wales says: “Routine inspections help to make sure your rental is fit for human habitation and free of hazards. If maintenance issues are spotted, they can be remedied quickly before defects cause further damage. Recording your findings is important as it creates a property condition record which can be shared with the tenant.

“In this case, if the landlord had been able to produce a routine property inspection record, dated and signed by the tenant demonstrating a CO detector was present and in working order, the repossession case may have been successful. The landlord will now have to wait six months before issuing a further no-fault eviction notice.”

Rent Smart Wales licensees are required to complete property inspections at intervals during a tenancy.