Awaab's Law and private landlords: where it's up to

This guide covers England. It's general information, not legal advice. Rules in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are different.

The short version

Awaab's Law has applied to social housing in England since 27 October 2025.
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 allows it to be extended to private rented homes, but this needs further regulations. No start date has been announced at the time of writing.
When it does arrive, expect fixed deadlines to investigate and fix hazards like damp and mould, similar to the social housing rules.
The best preparation is quick responses and dated records of every report and repair.

What Awaab's Law is

Awaab's Law is named after Awaab Ishak, a two-year-old who died in 2020 after long exposure to mould in his family's social housing flat in Rochdale. It sets legal deadlines for landlords to investigate and fix hazards once they've been told about them.

The rules for social landlords

The social housing rules have been in force since 27 October 2025 and cover damp and mould and all emergency hazards. More types of hazard are being added in stages. The main deadlines are:

Emergency hazards: investigate and make safe within 24 hours.
Significant hazards, such as serious damp and mould: investigate within 10 working days, and give the tenant a written summary within 3 working days of finishing the investigation.
Safety work: start within 5 working days of the investigation.
If the home can't be made safe in time, the landlord must offer suitable alternative accommodation.

What's happening for private landlords

The Renters' Rights Act 2025 gives the government the power to apply Awaab's Law to the private rented sector. The first big set of Renters' Rights Act changes started on 1 May 2026, but Awaab's Law for private landlords needs its own regulations. At the time of writing no start date has been announced, and the government has said the private sector rules will broadly follow the social housing model.

Private landlords still have to keep homes fit to live in and carry out repairs in a reasonable time. Councils can already take action on damp, mould and other serious hazards under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System.

We'll update this guide when a date is announced. Always check GOV.UK for the latest position.

How to get ready now

Give tenants one clear way to report problems, so you know the exact date you were told. Under Awaab's Law, the deadlines start from that moment.
Treat damp and mould as a priority. Find and fix the cause, such as leaks, poor ventilation or failed extractor fans, rather than just cleaning the mould.
Reply in writing to say what you'll do and when.
Keep a timeline: reported, inspected, work booked, fixed, with photos before and after.

UnitCare already works this way. Every report is dated, emergencies go to the top, tenants can send more photos, and each property has a full repair history you can print or save as a PDF.