"Category 1 hazards present a very real and present danger for people in the home. At any given moment, one can escalate into a life-altering, or even life-ending, disaster"
- Siân Hemming-Metcalfe - Inventory Base
More than one in ten private rented homes in England contains a Category 1 hazard, according to new research by Inventory Base, prompting calls for urgent landlord action ahead of the upcoming Renters’ Rights Bill.
Under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS), Category 1 hazards are defined as the most serious risks to a tenant’s health and safety. These include threats such as fire hazards, dangerous structural issues, severe cold, electrical risks, and mould, all of which can cause death, serious injury, or long-term health problems.
Awaab Ishak, a two-year-old child, died in 2020 from a severe respiratory infection linked to prolonged exposure to mould in his rented home. His death brought national attention to the potentially lethal impact of such hazards, which fall under the HHSRS’s most critical classification.
Inventory Base’s analysis of the latest government figures reveals that 10.7% of private rented homes in England contain at least one Category 1 hazard. These properties account for 27.8% of all Category 1 hazards in the country.
Certain areas are disproportionately affected. In North Yorkshire, 28.6% of privately rented homes contain one of these serious risks. Other local authority areas with high levels include:
Calderdale: 27.2%
Westmorland & Furness: 24.3%
Kirklees: 24.2%
Bradford: 23.8%
Herefordshire: 23.2%
Derbyshire Dales: 23%
East Riding of Yorkshire: 22.5%
Pendle: 21.6%
Malvern Hills: 21.3%
North Lincolnshire: 20%
“Category 1 hazards present a very real and present danger for people in the home,” said Siân Hemming-Metcalfe, operations director at Inventory Base UK. “At any given moment, one can escalate into a life-altering, or even life-ending, disaster.”
She continued, “So how have we ended up in such a position where more than one in ten private rented homes contains one or more of these life-threatening risks? While laws have long existed to prevent Category 1 hazards, enforcement has been weak. Hazards go unfixed. Rogue landlords face no consequences,"
"The result? Dangerous homes, and tenants left exposed. We only have to look at the recent scandal unfolding in Merseyside concerning two tower blocks that have been deemed so dangerous that the residents are about to be rendered homeless.”
"The Renters’ Rights Bill is expected to bring significant changes, offering local authorities enhanced powers to crack down on these issues. “The Renters’ Rights Bill is about to flip that script,” Hemming-Metcalfe explained. “Enforcement powers are being sharpened, with greater scrutiny and stronger penalties for landlords who ignore serious risks. There will be no excuse for inaction. Inventory Base makes it easy for tenants to report issues and for property managers to act immediately — on-site or remotely, from a phone or laptop.”
She concluded, “For far too long, too many hazards have been left to fester, with rogue landlords facing nothing more than a shrug from overstretched councils. Tougher enforcement is the right move but only if local authorities are properly resourced to carry it through.”
