Wales Landlord Asbestos, Window Safety and Structural Hazards: Your Obligations

The 29 statutory matters under the Renting Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) (Wales) Regulations 2022 include hazards that landlords of older Welsh properties encounter regularly: asbestos-containing materials, unsafe windows, non-compliant furniture, and structural deterioration. These conditions can contribute to a finding that a dwelling is unfit; the court assesses the property's circumstances rather than treating any one hazard as automatically decisive.

Asbestos (Matter 4)

Asbestos was used extensively in UK construction until it was fully banned in 1999. In Welsh rental properties built before the mid-1980s, asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) commonly appear in:

• Textured ceiling coatings (Artex-type finishes applied before the mid-1980s)
• Insulation board (AIB) panels behind heaters, in airing cupboards, and as soffit linings
• Floor tiles and their adhesive backing (particularly 9-inch vinyl tiles)
• Pipe lagging around heating pipework
• Corrugated roof sheets on outbuildings and extensions

Your legal position: The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 require anyone responsible for the maintenance of non-domestic premises to manage asbestos. While individual domestic dwellings are excluded from the duty to manage, landlords should still take care to avoid exposing people to asbestos:

• If ACMs are present in an individual dwelling and they are in good condition, they can remain in place. As a practical precaution, record their location and condition so they are not disturbed; the duty to manage under these regulations applies to non-domestic premises, including common parts, rather than inside an individual dwelling.
• If ACMs are damaged, deteriorating, or likely to be disturbed (e.g., during renovation), arrange an assessment by a competent asbestos professional. Only work that meets the licensing criteria must be done by a licensed asbestos contractor.
• Under Matter 4 of the fitness regulations, damaged ACMs that release airborne fibres are a serious hazard that can contribute to a finding that the dwelling is unfit for human habitation.

Before renovation work that may disturb materials in a building built or refurbished before 2000, obtain the appropriate asbestos survey and information for the work. Contractors must not disturb known or suspected ACMs without suitable controls.

Window Safety (Matter 22 — Falls Between Surfaces)

Falls from windows are one of the most serious domestic hazards, particularly for young children. Matter 22 of the fitness regulations covers the risk of falling from heights, including through windows.

Window restrictors or guarding should be provided where someone may fall through a window above ground-floor level, as set out in Approved Document K. The right measure depends on the window and opening.

Building Regulations apply to relevant building work rather than imposing a blanket retrofit duty on every existing window. Under Section 91, a window that creates a fall hazard may still contribute to a finding that the dwelling is unfit.

Glazing safety is also relevant. Ground-floor glazed doors, side panels, and low-level glazing should be safety glass (toughened or laminated) complying with BS 6206 or BS EN 12600. Older properties may have annealed glass in these locations, which shatters into dangerous shards on impact.

Furniture Fire Safety (Matter 24: Fire)

If you provide furnished accommodation, all upholstered furniture and furnishings must comply with the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 (as amended). This covers:

• Sofas, armchairs, and sofa beds
• Mattresses, bed bases, and headboards
• Cushions, pillows, and seat pads
• Children's furniture containing upholstery

Every item must carry a permanent compliance label showing it meets the ignition resistance tests. Furniture manufactured before 1 January 1950 is exempt if it has not been re-upholstered with non-compliant materials since.

Non-compliant furniture in a rental property is a criminal offence under the Consumer Protection Act 1987, separate from the fitness for habitation duty. Trading Standards can prosecute, and a fire caused by non-compliant furniture exposes you to both criminal and civil liability.

If you let unfurnished, this does not apply — but note that items left behind by previous occupants (a sofa in the living room, a mattress in a spare bedroom) become your responsibility if they are there when the contract-holder moves in.

Structural Safety (Matter 29)

Matter 29 covers structural collapse and falling elements: sagging roof timbers, bowing walls, deep structural cracks, loose chimney stacks, and deteriorating lintels. In older Welsh properties — particularly stone-built terraces and pre-war semi-detached houses — structural movement is common.

Not all cracks indicate structural failure. Hairline cracks in plaster from seasonal thermal movement may be cosmetic, while widening or diagonal cracks, or cracks accompanied by bulging or leaning walls, require investigation by a chartered structural engineer. Crack width alone does not determine whether a wall has structural failure.

Signs that warrant immediate professional assessment:

• Doors and windows that no longer close properly (frames distorted by movement)
• Visible bowing or leaning of external walls
• Sagging rooflines or displaced ridge tiles
• Loose or detached chimney pots and masonry
• Cracks running through brickwork (not just plaster)

A structural engineer's report can help determine whether movement is historic or progressive and what remedial work is needed. Progressive movement that threatens collapse can be a Category 1 HHSRS hazard, but that classification does not by itself decide whether the property is unfit under Section 91.

The Combined Risk in Older Properties

A pre-1970s Welsh rental property can easily present all four of these hazards simultaneously: Artex ceilings containing asbestos, sash windows without restrictors, inherited furniture without compliance labels, and hairline structural cracks that need monitoring. None of these is necessarily an emergency on its own, but cumulatively they create a property that may not pass scrutiny under either a council HHSRS inspection or a contract-holder's fitness claim.

A structured self-inspection that covers each of the 29 statutory hazard categories identifies these issues before they become enforcement actions. The Fitness for Human Habitation compliance guide includes a property self-inspection checklist that walks through each hazard with the indicators and evidence standards that councils and courts use to assess fitness.

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