For the rental market, the Renters’ Reform Bill has been the safety hot topic for years.

The bill has finally received Royal Assent, and will sweep in changes to England’s rental landscape – strengthening tenant rights and raising safety standards.

The newly enacted Renters’ Rights Act 2025 marks a seismic shift in the UK’s housing policy, particularly for the 11 million people living in privately rented homes and the millions more in social housing. Designed to rebalance the power between landlords and tenants, the legislation introduces a raft of reforms aimed at improving housing security, affordability and crucially, safety.

 

Evictions given notice

Among the headline changes is the abolition of Section 21 no-fault evictions, a long-contested practice that allowed landlords to remove tenants without justification.

This move is hoped to provide renters with greater stability and reduce the risk of sudden removal, whilst empowering tenants into feeling confident enough to speak up and challenge their landlord if conditions in their property are unsafe.

 

Accountability

For the private rental market, these reforms signal a new era of accountability. All landlords must now adhere to the Decent Homes Standard, a benchmark previously reserved for social housing. This mandates that properties must:

  • Meet legal housing standards, ensuring they are free from serious health and safety risks, known as ‘category 1 hazards’ (this is a wide banner of anything that is considered to be a serious danger in a home that could cause severe harm to health or safety)
  • Be in a reasonable state of repair. Essential components like roofs, walls, windows and heating systems must be functional and not require immediate repair.
  • Have reasonably modern facilities, including kitchens and bathrooms that are not older than 20 and 30 years, respectively. Adequate insulation and proper layout of common areas in blocks of flats are also required.
  • Provide a reasonable level of thermal comfort, which includes effective insulation and efficient heating systems.

Doesn’t really sound too much to ask, does it? Frightening to consider that these standards have had to be mandated into law, really…

 

The history

The extension of these standards is a direct response to tragic incidents like the death of Awaab Ishak, a two-year old child who died in December 2020 due toa  severe respiratory illness after prolonged exposure to mould in his Rochdale social housing association home. The inquest into his death found that despite repeated reports by his parents about the property’s uninhabitable conditions, their concerns were dismissed and the HA failed to take sufficient action. His tragic death prompted Awaab’s Law, which now requires social housing associations in the UK to urgently address all damp and mould hazards that present a significant risk of harm to tenants once reported, and the recent legislation change has extended this requirement to private rentals too.

 

Safety, aligned

This firming up of requirements in both the social and private sectors is great news for renters, and the safety of the rented sector in general. Tenants around the country are likely to see a heightened focus on living conditions as landlords – both private and social – react to the legislation. And with no-fault evictions being bought to a close, tenants should have a renewed confidence in being able to report anything that doesn’t feel right.

With the Renters’ Rights Act intensifying scrutiny on housing conditions, it is a great opportunity for landlords and housing providers to prioritise preventative safety, as well as reactive measures. This includes regular fire door inspections, ensuring ongoing compliance, and educating tenants about their function.

In this new chapter for the UK rental sector, the message is clear: safe homes are not optional. And for fire doors, quietly doing their job in corridors and stairwells, remain a key part of a safe and secure long-term home.