HHSRS for landlords: the 21 hazards that replaced the 29

The Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) is the method councils use to assess hazards in homes under Part 1 of the Housing Act 2004. Since 23 June 2026 it rates 21 hazards, not 29, in High, Medium and Low bands. A High score is a Category 1 hazard, and the council must act. Checked October 2026.

Many guides still list 29 hazards and the bands A to J. Both were replaced by the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/571). This guide explains the current system, how councils use it, and which hazards are ordinary repairs. We are EliteShires Property Services, on Kenton Lane in Harrow. We carry out repairs and maintenance for landlords across Harrow, Kenton, Stanmore and Edgware.

What is the HHSRS, and who uses it?

The HHSRS is a risk assessment tool for councils, set out in the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (England) Regulations 2005. It applies to every home, rented or owned. In practice councils use it mostly on private lets, which is where most of their housing enforcement happens.

An environmental health officer inspects the whole property, including the garden and outbuildings. They look for any defect in design, layout, repair or maintenance. For each defect they ask two questions. How likely is harm needing medical attention over the next 12 months? And how bad would that harm be?

The assessor scores the risk for the most vulnerable age group for that hazard, not the people living there now. GOV.UK's example is that someone aged 65 or over is more likely to fall down the stairs (landlord guide, updated 16 September 2026). So a steep staircase can score badly even if your tenant is a fit 30-year-old.

Inspections usually follow a tenant complaint. Referrals can also come from children's services, adult social care, the police or a GP surgery, and some councils inspect as part of a licensing scheme. GOV.UK's landlord guide says landlords need not train as assessors. They do need to keep their homes free of Category 1 hazards.

What changed in the HHSRS in 2026?

A government review simplified the system, and the new version applies to council inspections that began on or after 23 June 2026 (SI 2026/571, with the start date corrected by SI 2026/629). The main changes are:

1. 21 hazards instead of 29. Thirteen overlapping hazards were merged into five.
2. Three bands instead of ten. The bands A to J became High, Medium and Low.
3. Simpler likelihood scoring. GOV.UK's guide says the 16 likelihood categories have been grouped into four bands, from very likely to very unlikely.
4. Harm classes renamed. Classes I to IV are now extreme, severe, serious and moderate.
5. Baseline indicators. A checklist of reasonable standards, from drainage to fire safety. Falling below one is generally treated as a deficiency to assess. GOV.UK says they are not mandatory standards.

What are the 21 HHSRS hazards?

The 21 hazards are listed in Schedule 1 to the 2005 Regulations, as amended in 2026. The table gives each one, what it covers, and the usual fix. The last column is our practical view, not part of the law.

The 21 HHSRS hazards in England from 23 June 2026, and typical fixes

Which hazards should you look at first? GOV.UK does not publish a breakdown for the new list. The phasing of Awaab's Law in social housing is a fair guide. Phase 1 covered emergency hazards and significant damp and mould. Phase 2 adds excess cold and heat, falls, structural collapse, fire and explosions, electrical and hygiene hazards.

What is the difference between a Category 1 and Category 2 hazard?

A Category 1 hazard scores 1,000 or more and falls in the High band. The council has a duty to act on it (Housing Act 2004, section 5). A Category 2 hazard scores under 1,000 and falls in the Medium band (100 to 999) or the Low band (under 100). The council has a power to act on it, but no duty (section 7).

HHSRS bands before and after 23 June 2026

GOV.UK's landlord guide gives an example. A 1920s house with no working fixed heating scored 31,145 for excess cold. That is far above the 1,000 line. Each hazard is scored on its own, so one home can have a Category 1 hazard and several Category 2 ones at once.

What can the council do about a hazard?

The council can serve a hazard awareness notice, an improvement notice or a prohibition order, or take emergency action, and must explain its choice in a statement of reasons. GOV.UK's landlord guide sets out each option:

• Hazard awareness notice. Advice only. It requires no work and carries no right of appeal.
• Improvement notice. Requires set works by a set date. The works can't be required to start sooner than 28 days after service. Not complying is an offence.
• Prohibition order. Stops use of all or part of the home, or limits who can live there. It takes effect 28 days after it is made.
• Emergency remedial action. The council does the work itself, for a Category 1 hazard with an imminent risk of serious harm. GOV.UK's examples include exposed cables in a child's bedroom.
• Emergency prohibition order. Takes effect the same day, for the same level of risk.
• Demolition order or clearance area. Rare, and for Category 1 hazards only.

The council can charge a reasonable fee for taking action. It can also recover its costs for emergency work. You can appeal most notices to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber), within 21 days for an improvement notice and 28 days for most others. GOV.UK's guide suggests talking to the case officer first. You keep your right of appeal if you settle before the deadline.

What are the penalties under the HHSRS now?

The main penalties are a fine of up to £7,000 for a Category 1 hazard, prosecution or a civil penalty of up to £40,000 for ignoring an improvement notice, and a rent repayment order of up to two years' rent. Two of these changed in 2026.

1. Category 1 hazard penalty: up to £7,000. Since 22 June 2026, a council taking action on a Category 1 hazard can fine the person responsible up to £7,000. It applies where removing the hazard was reasonably practicable and they failed to do it (Housing Act 2004, section 6A, inserted by the Renters' Rights Act 2025). It does not apply to the common parts of a building containing flats.
2. Ignoring an improvement notice: up to £40,000. It is a criminal offence. The council can prosecute, with an unlimited fine, or impose a civil penalty instead. That penalty is up to £40,000 for offences on or after 1 May 2026, and £30,000 before (section 249A). Some guides still quote £30,000 as the current figure.
3. Rent repayment orders. For offences on or after 1 May 2026, a tenant or council can claim back up to two years' rent where an improvement notice or prohibition order was ignored.

The council can also do the work itself and recover the cost. A breach counts against you in the fit and proper person test for a licence. Breaching a prohibition order can only be prosecuted, with no civil penalty option. Our guide to landlord fines puts these next to the certificate penalties.

If a tenant won't let you in to do the work, GOV.UK says you can ask the council to vary or suspend the notice. You can also apply to the magistrates' court for an order requiring access (section 35). Keep a record of every attempt.

How do Awaab's Law and the Decent Homes Standard fit in?

Both build on the HHSRS hazard list, and neither yet applies to private landlords.

Awaab's Law. It sets fixed repair deadlines for social landlords. For private lets the government opened a consultation on 8 October 2026, closing 18 December 2026, with no start date set. GOV.UK points out that Awaab's Law looks at the actual tenant, while the HHSRS assesses a notional vulnerable occupant. Our guide to Awaab's Law for private landlords tracks the consultation.

Decent Homes Standard. Criterion A of the new standard is freedom from Category 1 hazards. The government's policy statement of 28 January 2026 says it will apply to private lets from 2035. That is a policy, not yet law. Until then the Category 1 duty already covers the same ground. Our guide to the Decent Homes Standard for private rentals covers the other four criteria.

The HHSRS also feeds into your repair and fitness duties. A home with a serious prescribed hazard can be unfit for human habitation under section 9A of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. A tenant can take you to court over that. The wider changes from the Act are in our guide to the Renters' Rights Act and landlord safety.

Which council enforces in Harrow, Kenton, Stanmore and Edgware?

The council for the address enforces the HHSRS, and in our area that can be Harrow, Brent or Barnet. Harrow covers Harrow and Stanmore. In Kenton, Kenton Road is the boundary between Harrow and Brent. Edgware is split between Barnet, which has the town centre and station, and Harrow's Edgware and Canons wards; a small part of HA8 falls in Brent.

Licensing schemes that can bring an inspection, by council (checked October 2026)

Every council can inspect any rented home after a complaint, licensed or not. The Renters' Rights Act also lets an occupier waive the 24 hours' notice a council officer normally gives before entering. The council must then tell the owner afterwards, saying when it entered and why. Our guide to licensing in Harrow, Brent and Barnet shows which scheme covers your address, and our landlord duties checker lists the certificates a let needs.

What should you fix first, and who fixes it?

Start with anything a tenant has reported, then walk the property against the hazards above. Most Category 1 findings in a typical house or flat are trade repairs.

1. Heating and hot water. No heat is the classic excess cold finding. Our plumbing repairs cover radiators, valves and leaks. Our radiator replacement service handles cold or failed radiators. Work on the boiler itself needs a Gas Safe registered engineer. Our first checks when a rental has no heating or hot water help you triage a report.
2. Electrics. Close any C1 or C2 codes from the EICR, and fix damaged sockets, exposed wiring and missing RCD protection. Our electricians do remedial work and consumer unit replacement.
3. Ventilation. Kitchen and bathroom extractor fans that don't work feed condensation and mould. Our electricians handle extractor fan repair and replacement.
4. Fire safety. Working smoke and CO alarms, and fire doors where the property needs them. See smoke alarm installation, fire door repairs and replacement and our fire door checklist.
5. Falls. Loose stair treads, missing handrails, lifted carpet and broken thresholds. Our carpentry team re-fixes stairs and rails. Our flooring fitters deal with trip edges.

Keep a dated record of each report, each visit and each repair. If the council does inspect, that record shows what you did and when. For local trade visits, see property maintenance in Harrow, Kenton, Stanmore and Edgware, or book an electrician in Harrow.