We are not solicitors. This site is free information only. We do not take claims, we do not pass your details to anyone, and we never ask you to sign anything. Who we are

Does Awaab's Law apply to private landlords?

In England, no, and that is unlikely to change soon. But you are not without protection, and one thing did change in your favour in May 2026.

Written by Gavin Thorne, Editor Last checked How we check this

Straight answer

England, private rented
Not covered. No phase of Awaab's Law applies to you.
England, council or housing association
Covered since 27 October 2025, widening on 30 November 2026.
Scotland, private rented
Covered from 6 October 2026 under separate Scottish rules.

Awaab's Law applies to registered providers of social housing. That means local authority landlords and housing associations. If your landlord is a private individual, a company, or you found the property through a letting agent, you are outside it.

This catches a lot of people out, because the coverage of Awaab Ishak's death and the law that followed did not always make the social housing limit clear. If you have been told by someone that your private landlord has 24 hours to fix your mould, that is not right in England.

Is it being extended?

The Renters' Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025 and includes the machinery to apply Awaab's Law to the private rented sector. What it does not include is a date. The government has said it will consult first, and at the time of writing no commencement date has been confirmed. The associated Decent Homes Standard for private renting is being discussed on a much longer timescale, with dates around 2035 being mentioned.

So the honest position is: it is coming in principle, and you should not plan around it arriving soon.

What actually protects you right now

  1. Section 11, Landlord and Tenant Act 1985

    Your landlord must keep the structure and exterior in repair, and keep the installations for water, gas, electricity, sanitation, space heating and water heating in working order. If damp is coming from a failed roof, a leaking pipe or rotten windows, this is your strongest ground. It does not cover condensation caused purely by how the property is used, which is where most disputes end up.

  2. Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018

    Your home must be fit to live in at the start of the tenancy and throughout it. Damp and mould are explicitly among the things that can make a home unfit. This is broader than section 11 because it is not limited to disrepair, so it can catch a home that is badly designed or ventilated rather than broken. You can take your landlord to court yourself under this Act.

  3. Your council's environmental health team

    This is the most underused route and it is free. Environmental health can inspect your home under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System, and if they find a serious hazard they can serve an improvement notice on your landlord requiring the work. Search your council's website for "report a problem with a private rented home". You do not need your landlord's permission to ask for an inspection.

  4. Statutory nuisance, Environmental Protection Act 1990

    If the condition of the property is prejudicial to health, it may be a statutory nuisance. Councils can act on this, and in some circumstances a tenant can bring a private prosecution in the magistrates' court.

Section 21 has gone

From 1 May 2026, section 21 no-fault eviction was abolished for assured tenancies in England and existing fixed terms converted to periodic tenancies. The practical effect for you is significant: the standard fear that complaining about damp will get you a two-month notice no longer has the same mechanism behind it. Your landlord now has to establish a legal ground to evict you. That makes environmental health referral a far less risky step than it used to be.

Common questions

Does Awaab’s Law apply to private landlords in England?

No. It applies to registered providers of social housing, meaning councils and housing associations. Private landlords are not covered by any phase of it, including Phase 2 on 30 November 2026.

Will it ever apply to private landlords?

The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 contains the power to extend Awaab’s Law to the private rented sector, but at the time of writing the government has not confirmed a commencement date. The new Decent Homes Standard for private renting is expected considerably later, around 2035.

So what does protect me as a private renter with damp?

Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018, and your council’s environmental health team, which can inspect and serve an improvement notice on your landlord. None of these have Awaab’s Law’s fixed clocks, but they do create real duties.

Can my landlord evict me for complaining?

Section 21 no-fault eviction was abolished for assured tenancies in England from 1 May 2026, which removes the main mechanism landlords used for retaliatory eviction. Your landlord still has to prove a legal ground to evict you. If you are being threatened with eviction after complaining, get advice from Shelter or your council straight away.

What if I rent privately in Scotland?

Different answer entirely. Scotland’s own version of Awaab’s Law comes into force on 6 October 2026 and it does cover private rented homes. See our Scotland guide.