Managing a house in multiple occupation (HMO)
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HMO landlord guide
We have produced a HMO landlord guidance document to help landlords and agents meet their legal responsibilities.
Minimum HMO standards
The Government has set a number minimum standards which licensed HMOs must comply with by law. These include provision of cooking and washing facilities, and minimum bedroom sizes.
We have adopted these into our Standards for Houses in Multiple Occupation:
We apply this policy to all HMOs in Barnet, whether licensable or not, to ensure all shared houses meet basic minimum standards.
HMO Management Regulations
Landlords, agents and tenants of all types of HMO must comply with the HMO Management Regulations.
The HMO Management Regulations require the manager to keep all parts of the HMO safe, clean and well maintained. Tenants of HMOs must cooperate with the manager and not damage any fire safety equipment.
It is an offence not to comply with any of the HMO Management Regulations.
Buildings which are converted into flats without the right Building Control checks are a special type of HMO which have their own Management Regulations
Hazards
All HMOs must be free from serious hazards as assessed by means of the Housing Health and Safety Rating System
HMO licence conditions
Most HMOs require a licence.
The licence holder must ensure that they comply with all of:
- their licence conditions
- the HMO Management Regulations
- relevant requirements throughout the lifetime of the licence, such as keeping your contact details up-to-date and sending in copies of safety certificates when they are due
It is an offence not to comply with any licence conditions and enforcement action may be taken against you.
HMO Enforcement Policy
The regulatory service enforcement policy explains the borough's approach to it’s use of enforcement powers. These can range from criminal prosecutions to informal action and advice.
Safety Advice on the Storage and Charging of E-scooters and E-bikes
On average there was a fire from a lithium battery in an e-bike or e-scooter every two days in 2023 in London.
If that the batteries in an e-bike or e-scooter become damaged or begin to fail they can quickly start fires.
The majority of fires related to e-bikes and e-scooter have happened in homes. These fires are often caused when charging batteries. When these batteries are charged in communal areas or escape routes, a fire breaking out can quickly block people’s ability to escape.
Many of these fires are caused by incompatible chargers, modifications to e-bikes, or faulty or counterfeit products which are purchased online. This includes chargers, lithium batteries and conversion kits for e-bikes.
London Fire Brigade’s #ChargeSafe campaign wants to prevent fires in e-bikes and e-scooters. Safety tips to reduce the risk of fire to protect you and your community can be found on the London Fire Brigage ChargeSafe page.
Further information can be found on the battery safety for e-scooter users gov.uk page.