HHSRS Hazards: An England Landlord's Inspection Guide

HHSRS hazards are health and safety risks assessed through the Housing Health and Safety Rating System. In England, the revised system covers 21 hazards, with the most serious classified as Category 1; councils must take enforcement action when they identify those hazards. The government's operating-guidance overview sets out that framework.

For a managing agent, the practical task is to turn observations into action without pretending that a routine visit is a formal assessment. Record the defect, its possible consequences, the work needed and who owns the next decision.

This guide concerns England. The landlord and agent guidance confirms that these updates do not apply to Wales, which has separate HHSRS regulations. Do not export the process unchanged to Scotland or Northern Ireland either.

What changed for HHSRS hazards in England?

The amending regulations came into force on 23 June 2026. The government guide explains the reduction from 29 hazards to 21, achieved by combining existing hazards rather than declaring the underlying risks unimportant.

For example, falls on level surfaces and falls associated with baths and showers now sit within “falls on the level”. The regulations also bring carbon monoxide and other specified pollutants within “indoor air pollutants”, and combine food, washing, sanitation and related deficiencies within “domestic hygiene”.

Do not delete inspection questions just because a heading has disappeared from an old form. Retain the observations and map them to the revised hazard names. A combined category still needs enough detail to distinguish a damaged bathroom surface from a dangerous route through the home.

The update also introduces suggested baseline indicators to help identify deficiencies. The government guide describes these as reasonable standards to look for, not a replacement for assessing risk. A completed checklist is an inspection aid, not a certificate that the property is safe.

What is a Category 1 hazard?

Under the revised statutory bands, a score of 1,000 or more falls in the High band and is a Category 1 hazard. The Medium band starts at 100 and runs below 1,000; Low is below 100. Medium and Low are Category 2 hazards.

Use those statutory boundaries when updating software or forms. Do not interpret a medium-risk label as permission to ignore the issue: councils have discretion to enforce Category 2 hazards, even though the duty to take action attaches to Category 1.

The assessment guidance combines the likelihood of harm requiring medical intervention over the following 12 months with the likely severity of the outcomes. It produces a separate score for each hazard, rather than adding defects into a single property-wide score.

Assessment generally considers the age group most vulnerable to the particular hazard, rather than only the current resident. The guide identifies overcrowding and lack of living space as the exception, assessed against the current household. “Our tenant is fit and healthy” is therefore not a sound reason to dismiss a property defect.

Keep your own operational priority separate from a formal hazard score. Staff can escalate a dangerous report without waiting to calculate a score, and should not invent a score from a photograph. Use qualified assessment where the condition or consequences require it.

How should agents use the baseline indicators?

The baseline self-assessment appendix says there is no obligation to conduct this self-assessment. It also warns that meeting the indicators may not eliminate every risk, and that alternative or additional works can be necessary where an indicator cannot reasonably apply.

Use the official checklist alongside the following suggested action record. It is an agency working document, not an alternative statutory test:

• Record the property, inspection date, inspector and areas actually inspected. Mark inaccessible areas explicitly instead of treating a blank field as a satisfactory result.

• Describe the observed deficiency in ordinary language, including its location and extent. Preserve the resident's account separately from the inspector's observations.

• Identify potentially related hazards. Leave the final classification open where technical assessment is needed.

• Record immediate safety concerns, the person assessing them and any interim measures agreed. Do not substitute a future appointment for a current safety decision.

• Assign the investigation or remedial work to a named owner, with an agreed update point and an escalation route if the instruction stalls.

• Close the entry with evidence of the work and a check of the remaining condition. Preserve outstanding follow-up rather than marking the whole case complete when an invoice arrives.

During the visit, use the official headings to prompt attention to structure, walking surfaces, security, heating, ventilation, moisture, hygiene and fire safety. Those subjects all appear in the government checklist. Treat unverified technical points as questions for an appropriate specialist.

For a damp report, capture location, spread, previous reports and the condition of relevant ventilation or heating. Connect that evidence to the damp and mould complaint process, rather than closing the issue after sending generic ventilation advice.

For excess heat, include the resident's account of overheating and the rooms affected in the inspection brief. Excess heat remains a listed hazard in the operating guidance. Do not let a winter-focused inspection form omit it.

What can a council require, and what penalties apply?

The government enforcement summary distinguishes advisory hazard awareness notices, improvement notices requiring remedial action, and prohibition orders restricting use of a property or part of it. These are different instruments with different effects; read the actual document before deciding what the landlord must do.

Emergency remedial action and emergency prohibition orders have additional conditions, including a Category 1 hazard presenting an imminent risk of serious harm. The guide also identifies the absence of a management order as a condition. A high hazard score does not automatically mean every emergency power is available.

When a notice arrives, preserve the document and statement of reasons, identify the recipient, work required and applicable dates, and obtain advice promptly on compliance or appeal. Give the contractor the specified work, not a paraphrase that loses a requirement. Track evidence against each instruction.

There are distinct financial exposures under the government guide:

• A council can impose up to £7,000 on the responsible person when first taking action over a Category 1 hazard in qualifying residential premises, excluding common parts of buildings containing flats. It must consider that removal was reasonably practicable and the person failed to secure it. This is not an automatic fine for every defect.

• Failure to comply with an improvement notice can attract a civil penalty of up to £40,000 for offences committed on or after 1 May 2026, as an alternative to prosecution. The earlier maximum was £30,000.

• For qualifying offences committed on or after 1 May 2026, including failure to comply with an improvement notice or prohibition order, a rent repayment order can cover up to two years' rent, limited to the period of contravention. It requires a tribunal process; it is not an automatic consequence of an inspection finding.

Keep access difficulties and attempted arrangements in the file. If compliance is obstructed, obtain advice on the available route rather than assuming an unanswered appointment request stops the notice taking effect.

How does HHSRS fit with Awaab's Law and repair records?

The government guide distinguishes HHSRS's notional vulnerable occupant from Awaab's Law's focus on the actual tenant. It says an HHSRS assessment is not required under Awaab's Law. Do not delay a safety response while waiting for a council score.

The consultation on extending Awaab's Law to private rented tenancies and licences opened on 9 October 2026 and closes on 18 December 2026. Its proposals should not be presented as current private-landlord repair deadlines. The HHSRS guide also explains that the Decent Homes Standard requires council homes to be free of Category 1 hazards. These connections do not make a self-assessment a substitute for the separate legal duties.

Use the Awaab's Law timescales guide when checking the applicable tenure, and keep the inspection record connected to the repair history. Ask what remains unresolved, not merely whether somebody attended.

Aloft offers Maintenance AI, Lettings AI and Payments AI. Maintenance AI supports maintenance triage and repair coordination with configurable approvals and operator oversight. Keep professional assessment and decisions about the property's safety with the responsible people; a repair workflow is not an HHSRS assessment.

An inspection finding needs an owner before it needs a closed status.

Frequently asked questions

Have the HHSRS hazards changed from 29 to 21?

Yes, in England. The government guide confirms the reduction from 29 hazards to 21, with existing hazards combined into broader descriptions. Update the hazard names on inspection forms without dropping the underlying checks. Wales has separate regulations, so an English form should not be assumed suitable for a Welsh portfolio.

Does a Category 1 hazard always mean emergency action?

No. Councils must take enforcement action for Category 1 hazards, but emergency powers have additional conditions, including imminent risk of serious harm. The government guide explains the available options. Treat the council's chosen notice or order as the document to act on, rather than inferring its requirements from the hazard label alone.

Is the baseline indicators self-assessment compulsory?

No. The official appendix says there is no obligation to conduct it. It is useful for identifying deficiencies, but meeting the indicators does not eliminate all risks. Record the condition, uncertainty and follow-up action; do not describe a completed checklist as council approval or proof of compliance.