Are landlords obliged to provide a cooker in an unfurnished property?

Are landlords obliged to provide a cooker in an unfurnished property?

21:29 PM, 4th January 2013, About 11 years ago 11

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Are landlords obliged to provide a cooker in an unfurnished propertyWe are about to rent out a house that does not have a cooker, just a space for a free standing one with a gas connection.

A local estate agent mentioned to my husband that we are legally obliged to provide a cooker. Please could you tell me if she is right as I did not think it was a legal requirement in an unfurnished property.

Thanks for any advice given.

Kind Regards

Ashley Fett


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Comments

21:50 PM, 4th January 2013, About 11 years ago

Interesting as inventory clerks unfurnished properties we do inventories and check ins for normally have fitted kitchens which always include a cooker at least, so a cooker is not something you would expect a tenant to provide, we do a lot of work in Berlin Germany and many apartments don't have fitted kitchens at all but there the law is you have to provide a working cooker and sink at least in all apartments even if they don't have a fitted kitchen or even a kitchen so there is probably an EEC saying something similar for the the UK I would think.

It's ironic in Berlin tenants can sign to say you provided a cooker but they asked you to remove it as they sometimes bring their kitchen with them form a previous apartment thank goodness younger Germans want fully fitted kitchen these days..

John Aitken

020inventories.com

Anthony Endsor

21:56 PM, 4th January 2013, About 11 years ago

NO.

In an unfurnished property there is no legal obligation to provide a cooker, though if one is provided it must meet the requirements for the Gas Safe certificate and thus be tested as such. Obviously it makes sense to have a place for a free standing one, and no tenant will expect to rent a house without this, but the cooker itself is down to the tenant.

Mark Alexander - Founder of Property118

22:09 PM, 4th January 2013, About 11 years ago

I don't know what the law says but I think it will probably let quicker with a cooker regardless.

12:04 PM, 5th January 2013, About 11 years ago

There is currently no legal obligation to supply a cooker in a privately rented property.

Local Housing Authority/council properties are not normally supplied with a cooker.

However, as a letting agent and landlords ourselves, we advise our landlords that their property would be let more quickly if it has one fitted and always ensure that we fit one in our own properties. I wouldn't want to take a risk with a tenant getting a 'mate' to fit a cooker in one of my properties I would prefer to use a correctly qualified tradesman to ensure the safety of the tenant and that we are covered as far as insurance is concerned should something go wrong.

Our tenancy agreement states that where any appliance is to be fitted by the tenant it must be carried out by a professional qualified tradesman and we can supply a list of such to the tenant if required. We would expect to see the relevant documentation if any appliance is supplied and fitted by the tenant and where this cannot be supplied we would arrange a safety check on the appliance immediately at cost to the tenant.

So no legal obligation but a moral one as a good landlord.

11:51 AM, 6th January 2013, About 11 years ago

No.

It should depend on your area and your market. Long termers and house-renters tend to have their own white goods in my experience.

My policy is to supply one on request, unless it is a built-in, otherwise you end up with shedloads (literally) of nearly new cookers. I have had several experiences of having to remove new cookers.

I usually supply a basic plus one level cooker with a warranty, and if I can get one an annual pro-oven-clean as part of the deal.

Fortunately the headquarters of Appliances Direct is in our area.

Jonathan Clarke

23:57 PM, 6th January 2013, About 11 years ago

No they are not obliged to supply to the best of my knowledge. I wont put one in as a matter of course when I buy a property. When I do a viewing when they pick up on it and ask do I supply a cooker I will say `it depends`. Some want gas , some electric. Some have there own fancy ones and want to bring it with them. If i had bought one and installed it they may want to take mine out. Everything is negotiable.

I wont spend £250 unless I have to but if I warm to a prospective tenant on the strength of our initial meeting and the lack of a cooker is a sticking point then I will offer to install one as quick as a flash if they ask me too. If they say its not a problem and they will pick one up at their own expense then my £250 stays firmly in my pocket

Industry Observer

15:20 PM, 7th January 2013, About 11 years ago

It may let quicker but if it is Landlord equipment then so is the servicing and repair unless tenant fault!!

I'm always amazed because if I rented an unfurnished property I'd only expect to find carpets and curtain tracks (if lucky) and maybe curtains (if very lucky). Unfurnished surely means unfurnished, doesn't it?

There is no Law on this, though various tenants may demand one, such as local authorities renting from you and companies etc. The reason in the LA case is that under the old DSS Regs unfurnished properties still had to have something to cook on, something to eat off (table not plates!!) and something to kip on (bed not the floor!!). I think this definition may survive and that is possibly where those thinking there is some obligation on it get that idea from.

5:38 AM, 11th January 2013, About 11 years ago

Sound like. The Gas Safe Register is the official registration scheme in the United Kingdom, Isle of Man and Guernsey for installers and maintenance engineers dealing with natural gas appliances. http://www.local-plymouth-plumber.co.uk/

14:44 PM, 13th January 2013, About 11 years ago

I provided most white goods, even a dishwasher as I find this can mean less wear and tear on the sink and surrounding working surfaces. It also keeps the kitchen tidier. However with cookers I find many tenants abuse them by failing to clean them (I've even heard some tenants expect the landlord to do the cleaning at end of let). It's our most common deposit deduction at around £70. Sometimes when they have broken the glass door it's cheaper to replace the cooker especially as built in ones are pretty reasonable these days and many just plug in. Occasionally I have come across tenants who prefer their own white goods but I find if you keep the white goods up-to-date clean and safe they usually accept or want them. And it usually speeds up re-letting.

AnthonyJames

14:23 PM, 15th January 2013, About 11 years ago

You may not be legally required to supply a cooker, but it makes perfect sense to do so. Put yourself in the shoes of the tenant: would you really want to lug a cooker around with you from property to property, with the risk that the next property you move to has its own cooker, leaving you with a useless piece of heavy equipment? I am a tenant myself as well as a landlord, and I would steer well clear of any property where the landlord expected me to provide a cooker (and pay to get the blasted thing connected and then disconnected). I regard it as the bare civilised minimum that a landlord should provide a cooker, fridge and washing machine: these are not expensive items in the scheme of things, and I don't think it's fair to expect the tenant to provide them.

If these items are damaged, well that's what inventories and deposits are for.

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