Rent Act 1977

Section 27.

SCHEDULE 6 Adjustment of Rent in Respect of Repairs

PART I Adjustment of Rent Limit

1 (1) This Part of this Schedule shall have effect in ascertaining the rent limit by reference to the 1956 gross value.

(2) If under the terms of the tenancy the tenant is responsible for all repairs, the appropriate factor is four-thirds.

(3) If under the terms of the tenancy the tenant is responsible for some but not all repairs, the appropriate factor is such number less than 2 but greater than four-thirds as may be or have been agreed in writing between the landlord and the tenant or determined by the county court.

2 (1) In paragraph 1 above the expression " repairs " does not include internal decorative repairs, but if the landlord is responsible for internal decorative repairs under the terms of the tenancy, or neither the landlord nor the tenant is responsible therefor under the terms of the tenancy but the landlord elects to be treated for the purposes of Part II of this Act as responsible therefor,—

(a) " seven-thirds" and " five-thirds" shall be substituted respectively for " 2 " and "four-thirds" in section 27 of this Act and in paragraph 1 above, and

(b) in the case of an election under this paragraph the question whether the rent limit applicable to any rental period beginning after the election is to be ascertained under section 27(1) or (2) of this Act shall be determined as if the election had always had effect.

(2) An election under this paragraph shall be made by notice in the prescribed form served on the tenant and shall continue in force notwithstanding any change in the person of the landlord.

(3) An election under this paragraph shall not have effect if the tenant dissents from it in writing within one month of the service on the tenant of the notice under sub-paragraph (2) above.

(4) If the tenant duly dissents, Part VII of this Act shall have effect as if, in relation to the dwelling in question, the circumstances specified in Case 1 in Schedule 15 to this Act included the case where the tenant has failed to keep the dwelling in a reasonable state of internal decorative repair, having due regard to its age, character and locality.

PART II Abatement for Disrepair

Notification of disrepair to landlord

3 This Part of this Schedule shall have effect where the tenant under a controlled tenancy serves on the landlord a notice in the prescribed form stating that—

(a) the dwelling or any part of it is in disrepair by reason of defects specified in the notice, and

(b) those defects ought reasonably to be remedied, having due regard to the age, character and locality of the dwelling,

and requesting the landlord to remedy them.

Landlord's undertaking to repair and certificates of disrepair

4 (1) If, on the expiry of 6 weeks from the service of a notice under paragraph 3 above, any of the defects specified in the notice remain unremedied, then, unless the landlord has given an undertaking in the prescribed form to remedy those defects or such of them as the tenant may agree in writing to accept as sufficient, the tenant may in the prescribed form apply to the local authority for a certificate of disrepair.

(2) Any application under this paragraph shall be accompanied by a copy of the notice served on the landlord.

(3) Where an application under this paragraph is made to a local authority and the local authority are satisfied—

(a) that the dwelling or any part of it is in disrepair by reason of defects specified in the notice served on the landlord and,

(b) that all or any of those defects ought reasonably to be remedied, having due regard to the age, character and locality of the dwelling,

they shall issue to the tenant a certificate of disrepair accordingly.

(4) Any such certificate of disrepair shall be in the prescribed form and shall specify the defects as to which the local authority are satisfied as mentioned in sub-paragraph (3) above, stating that the local authority are so satisfied.

(5) If, on an application by the tenant, the county court is satisfied, with respect to any defects, that the local authority have failed to issue a certificate of disrepair which ought to have been issued, the court shall direct the authority to proceed on the footing that, in relation to those defects, they are satisfied as to the matters specified in sub-paragraph (3) above ; and if, on an application by the tenant, the county court is satisfied that any defect not specified in a certificate of disrepair ought to have been specified therein, the court shall order that the defect shall be deemed to have been specified in the certificate.

(6) The local authority shall not be concerned to inquire into any obligation as between a landlord and a tenant or into the origin of any defect; but if, on an application by the landlord, the county court is satisfied, with respect to any defect specified in a certificate of disrepair, that it is one for which the tenant is responsible, the court shall cancel the certificate with respect to that defect.

(7) If, on an application by the landlord, the county court is satisfied with respect to any defect specified in a certificate of disrepair that it ought not to have been so specified, the court shall cancel the certificate with respect to that defect.

(8) Where a certificate of disrepair is cancelled under this paragraph with respect to all the defects specified therein, it shall be deemed never to have had effect; and where it is so cancelled with respect to some only of the defects specified therein, it shall be deemed never to have had those defects specified therein.

5 (1) Where, after the issue of a certificate of disrepair, the landlord applies to the local authority for the cancellation of the certificate on the ground that the defects specified in the certificate have been remedied, the local authority shall serve on the tenant a notice to the effect that, unless an objection from the tenant is received by them within 3 weeks from the service of the notice on the ground that those defects or any of them have not been remedied, they propose to cancel the certificate.

(2) If no objection is received as mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) above, or if, in the opinion of the local authority, the objection is not justified, they shall cancel the certificate as from the date of the application or such later date as appears to them to be the date on which the defects specified in the certificate were remedied.

(3) Where the landlord has applied to the local authority for the cancellation of a certificate of disrepair and the authority have not cancelled the certificate, the landlord may apply to the county court, and if on the application the court is satisfied that the certificate ought to have been cancelled by the local authority, the court shall order that the certificate shall cease to have effect as from the date of the order or such earlier date as may be specified in the order.

(4) Where the local authority have cancelled a certificate of disrepair the tenant may apply to the county court, and if on the application the court is satisfied that the certificate ought not to have been cancelled, the court may order that it shall be deemed not to have been cancelled.

Abatement of rent where certificate issued or undertaking not carried out

6 (1) Where an application for a certificate of disrepair is granted, any notice of increase served during the period beginning 6 months before the date of the application and ending when the certificate ceases to be in force shall have no effect with respect to any rental period beginning while the certificate is in force, except in so far as it specifies an increase authorised by section 29, 31 or 32 of this Act.

(2) Where a certificate of disrepair is issued, the appropriate factor applicable to any rental period beginning while the certificate is in force shall be four-thirds and the rent limit shall be ascertained under subsection (1) of section 27 of this Act, notwithstanding anything in subsection (3) of that section or section 145(4) of this Act.

(3) A notice of increase served while a certificate of disrepair is in force shall be void unless it contains a statement that it will not take effect while the certificate is in force, except in so far as the increase specified in it is authorised by section 29, 31 or 32 of this Act.

(4) Without prejudice to sub-paragraphs (1) to (3) above, but subject to sub-paragraph (5) below, the tenant shall be entitled to withhold rent otherwise recoverable for rental periods beginning while the certificate of disrepair continues in force up to an aggregate amount equal to the aggregate amount of rent for rental periods which began—

(a) on or after the date of the application for the certificate of disrepair, and

(b) before the granting thereof,

being rent which would have been made irrecoverable by sub-paragraphs (1) to (3) above if the certificate had been in force throughout those rental periods.

(5) The amount of rent withheld for any rental period by virtue of sub-paragraph (4) above shall not exceed the amount of rent made irrecoverable by sub-paragraphs (1) to (3) above for the first rental period beginning while the certificate is in force.

(6) Where under paragraph 4 above an application is made to the court for the cancellation of a certificate of disrepair with respect to all the defects specified therein, and the application is made within 3 weeks after the issue of the certificate, the rent recoverable for any rental period beginning while proceedings on the application are pending shall, until those proceedings are concluded, be deemed to be the same as if the certificate had not been issued.

7 (1) If on the expiry of 6 months from the giving of such an undertaking as is mentioned in paragraph 4 above, any defects to which the undertaking relates remain unremedied, the same consequences shall follow as if a certificate of disrepair had then been issued and had continued in force until the remedying of the defects, and (where the undertaking was given before any application for such a certificate had been made) as if such an application had been made when the undertaking was given.

(2) Where such an undertaking has been given, the landlord or the tenant may apply to the local authority for a certificate under this sub-paragraph, and the local authority shall certify whether any, and if so which, of the defects to which the undertaking relates remain unremedied.

(3) A certificate under sub-paragraph (2) above shall in any proceedings be evidence until the contrary is proved of the matters certified.

8 (1) If a certificate of disrepair is issued to the tenant of a dwelling, and the dwelling, or any part of it which is in disrepair by reason of the defects specified in the certificate, is subject to a sub-tenancy which is a controlled tenancy, then unless a certificate of disrepair in respect of those defects has been issued to the subtenant, the same consequences shall follow as between the tenant and the sub-tenant as if a certificate of disrepair—

(a) had been issued to the sub-tenant when the certificate was issued to the tenant, and

(b) had specified the same defects as the certificate issued to the tenant, and

(c) had been issued on an application made by the sub-tenant when the tenant applied for the certificate issued to him, and

(d) had continued in force for the same period as that certificate.

(2) Where paragraph 7(1) above has effect as between the landlord and the tenant, sub-paragraph (1) above shall have effect accordingly as between the tenant and the sub-tenant.

(3) Nothing in this paragraph shall prejudice the power of the sub-tenant to obtain a certificate of disrepair or the effect of any undertaking given to the sub-tenant.

Rent limit following cancellation of certificate of disrepair in cases to which section 31 applies

9 In a case to which section 31 of this Act applies, upon the cancellation of a certificate of disrepair, the rent limit for a rental period beginning after the cancellation shall be the greater of the following amounts:—

(a) an amount calculated under section 27 of this Act (disregarding section 31); and

(b) an amount calculated under that section as if subsection (1)(a) required the multiplication of the 1956 gross value of the dwelling by the reduced factor specified in paragraph 6(2) above and the addition to the figure arrived at of any increase permitted under section 31.

General and supplemental

10 This Part of this Schedule shall apply while a controlled tenancy continues notwithstanding any change in the person of the landlord or the tenant.

11 (1) The defects which may be specified in a certificate of disrepair shall not include any defects in the state of internal decorative repair unless the landlord is responsible for internal decorative repairs under the terms of the tenancy or is to be treated as responsible therefor by virtue of an election under paragraph 2 above.

(2) In considering whether or not to issue a certificate of disrepair or what defects to specify in such a certificate, the local authority shall treat the landlord as responsible for internal decorative repairs if the application for a certificate alleges that he is responsible therefor or that he is to be treated as responsible therefor by virtue of an election under paragraph 2 above, but in any other case the local authority shall treat the landlord as not responsible for such repairs.

(3) Paragraph 4(6) above shall apply in relation to a defect in the state of internal decorative repair as if, for the words "for which the tenant is responsible ", there were substituted " for which the landlord is not responsible and is not to be treated as responsible by virtue of an election under paragraph 2 above ".

12 (1) On an application to the local authority for a certificate of disrepair or a certificate under paragraph 7(2) above, there shall be paid to the local authority a fee of 12 ½ pence, but where a certificate of disrepair, or a certificate under that paragraph certifying that any defects remain unremedied, is granted to the tenant he shall be entitled to deduct the fee from any subsequent payment of rent to the landlord.

(2) If a certificate of disrepair is cancelled by the court under paragraph 4 above with respect to all the defects specified in the certificate, any sum deducted under this paragraph may be recovered by the landlord.

(3) On an application to the local authority for the cancellation of a certificate of disrepair, there shall be paid to the local authority a fee of 121 pence.

13 In the case of a controlled tenancy of a dwelling which forms part of any other premises owned by or under the control of the landlord or a superior landlord,—

(a) any disrepair of the roof or of any other part of those premises which results, or may result, in disrepair of the dwelling, and

(b) any disrepair of any staircase or other approach to the dwelling contained in those premises,

shall be treated for the purposes of this Part of this Schedule as if it were disrepair of the dwelling.

14 The local authority shall serve a copy of every certificate of disrepair issued by them on the landlord.

15 (1) In this Part of this Schedule, references to defects for which the tenant is responsible are references—

(a) to defects for the remedying of which, as between the landlord and the tenant, the tenant is responsible; or

(b) to defects which are due to any act, neglect or default of the tenant or any person claiming under him or to any breach by the tenant or such a person of any express agreement.

(2) In this Part of this Schedule, except where the context otherwise requires, " local authority ", in relation to any premises, means the Council of the district or of the London borough in which the premises are situated or, if they are situated in the City of London, the Common Council of the City of London.