As a landlord of premises that are used commercially, you will have a number of responsibilities. We take a look at the main areas you need to be aware of.
Maintenance and repairs
Your lease will specify what your tenant’s liabilities are when it comes to maintenance and repairs. Where the lease is on a fully repairing and insuring basis, the tenant will be responsible for keeping the property in a good condition. This includes returning it to its original state at the end of the term of the lease.
As the landlord, you will generally retain liability for the structure of the building, including the external walls, the foundation and the roof.
Health and safety
Gas safety
The lease will also specify who has responsibility for gas safety. This could be shared, with the tenant looking after gas installations within their part of the building and the landlord dealing with the equipment that does not fall within tenanted areas.
Where the landlord has responsibility, you are obliged to make sure that any gas fitting is maintained in a safe condition. The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 state that you will also need to ensure that each appliance and flue is checked for safety within 12 months of its installation and every 12 months thereafter.
The checks need to be carried out by an engineer who has Gas Safe registration and who will provide you with a gas safety certificate to show that this has been done. A copy of the certificate should be provided to the tenant within 28 days of the date of the check.
Electrical safety
You are also required to make sure the electrical system is safe. The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 requires that the electrical installation is safe at the beginning of the tenancy and maintained in a safe condition throughout. It is recommended that an electrical inspection is made before the property is let, with an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) provided. Further inspections should be made throughout the tenancy, at a minimum of once every five years.
Fire safety
The person deemed to be in control of the property will be responsible for fire safety, in accordance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. Where the property is not a place of work, the person in control is generally presumed to be the owner. If the property is a workplace, then the employer is usually considered to be the person in control.
You should consider fire safety when compiling a risk assessment for the property. If you are the person in control of the property, you should provide adequate fire safety equipment, such as fire extinguishers. Your tenant will generally be responsible for putting an evacuation procedure in place.
Asbestos
The presence of asbestos on the property should also be noted in your property risk assessment. It is not always necessary to remove this, but it should be managed as required in the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012. The tenant may have responsibility for this under the terms of the lease, but if the lease is not clear on this point, it may be for the landlord to deal with.
Buildings insurance
It is open to you to take on the responsibility for arranging buildings insurance when you agree to the terms of the lease. It is advisable to do this so that you can ensure you have the level of cover you want and you can also deal with any claims yourself. You can also be sure that the cover is maintained. The lease will usually require the tenant to pay for the buildings insurance, which you can recover from them by way of service charge.
Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES)
Most properties now need to have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), which rates the property’s energy efficiency. A is the most efficient rating while G is the least. The Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards or MEES require a rented property to have an EPC rating of no worse than E when a new lease is issued. From 1 April 2023, all commercial properties will need to be rated E or above.
It is likely that the law will change in the future to require a higher level of energy efficiency.
Contact our commercial lease solicitors
At Witan Solicitors, we represent landlords and tenants across a range of sectors. Our commercial property dispute solicitors in London, Birmingham and Northampton can advise you on your rights and responsibilities under the terms of your lease and represent you if a dispute has arisen between you and your tenant.
If you need advice in respect of what a landlord is responsible for in a commercial lease or any other commercial property dispute, email us at info@witansolicitors.co.uk or fill in our contact form and we will be happy to help you.
