The Housing Health and Safety Rating System changed on 23 June 2026. The number of hazards fell from 29 to 21, the old A-to-J scoring bands were replaced by High, Medium and Low risk bands, and the four classes of harm are now described as Extreme, Severe, Serious and Moderate.
What has not changed is the Category 1 threshold. A hazard scoring 1,000 or more remains a Category 1 hazard, and local authorities still have a duty to take appropriate enforcement action where one is identified. Category 2 hazards score below 1,000 and remain subject to councils’ discretionary enforcement powers.
For landlords, inspection forms and compliance documents using the old hazard names and A-to-J bands should now be updated. For tenants, the terminology used by environmental health officers and housing experts has changed, but the HHSRS remains a risk-based system rather than a relaxation of housing standards.
What actually merged
The reduction from 29 hazards to 21 came from combining hazards with sufficiently similar causes and harm profiles. Fire and explosions are now one hazard, but structural collapse and falling elements remains a separate hazard.
Other changes include combining falls on level surfaces with falls associated with baths and showers; combining collision and entrapment with position and operability of amenities; combining several chemical and combustion-related hazards into one category; and combining food safety, domestic hygiene, pests and refuse, and personal hygiene, sanitation and drainage into a broader domestic hygiene hazard.
| Element | Before 23 June 2026 | Current system |
|---|---|---|
| Number of hazards | 29 | 21 |
| Risk bands | A to J | High, Medium, Low |
| High risk | Bands A to C generally fell within Category 1 | Score of 1,000 or more |
| Medium risk | Part of the former Category 2 bands | Score of 100 to 999 |
| Low risk | Lower former bands | Score below 100 |
| Classes of harm | Class I to IV | Extreme, Severe, Serious, Moderate |
| Baseline indicators | No equivalent consolidated checklist | New guidance covering matters such as drainage, heating, ventilation, guarding, damp and mould, fire safety and security |
The new baseline indicators are important, but they are not statutory minimum standards in their own right. Government guidance describes them as suggested measures and examples of reasonable or good practice. Failing one is treated as a deficiency that may need to be assessed under the HHSRS; passing every indicator does not automatically prove that a property is free from hazards.
Why this matters for disrepair claims
A common misunderstanding is that the HHSRS itself gives tenants a direct cause of action against their landlord. It does not. It is primarily the assessment and enforcement framework used by local authorities under the Housing Act 2004.
A tenant’s civil remedies may instead arise from repairing obligations such as section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 and the fitness-for-human-habitation duties introduced by the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018.
The connection is still important. Section 10 of the 1985 Act requires the court, when deciding whether a dwelling is fit for human habitation, to have regard to prescribed hazards. The 2026 HHSRS reform therefore changes the prescribed hazard framework that may be relevant to that assessment. However, a formal HHSRS inspection or numerical score is not required before a court can find a property unfit for human habitation.
Surveyors and environmental health officers working under the HHSRS should now use the revised hazard descriptions and scoring framework. Older reports do not automatically become invalid merely because they use the former terminology, but their conclusions may need to be understood alongside the current system.
If you are a tenant living with damp, excessive cold, electrical danger or another serious condition, our housing disrepair solicitors in London can advise on the civil claim and any involvement from the local authority.
A situation worth understanding
Consider a tenant who has reported recurring black mould in a bedroom over several winters. Painting over the mould without investigating whether the underlying cause is penetrating damp, condensation, inadequate ventilation, defective heating or another building problem may leave the underlying hazard unresolved.
Under the revised HHSRS, an assessor considers all relevant deficiencies contributing to the damp and mould growth hazard and calculates the risk over the following 12 months. If the score reaches 1,000 or more, it is a High-risk Category 1 hazard and the council must take enforcement action.
For a subsequent civil dispute, evidence of repeated complaints, inspections, photographs, repair records and the landlord’s response can be significant. Our guide on building an evidence file that stands up in court explains the importance of maintaining an organised record, while managing disrepair counterclaims considers how property-condition disputes can affect possession proceedings.
What landlords should do now
Remove obsolete A-to-J terminology from inspection templates and property-management systems. Existing records should not be rewritten, but new assessments and correspondence should reflect the current High, Medium and Low bands and the revised 21-hazard framework.
Landlords should also familiarise themselves with the baseline indicators. They cover a broad range of matters, including heating and insulation, ventilation, moisture control, guarding to windows and changes of level, electrical and gas installations, security and fire safety.
The enforcement consequences have also strengthened. From 22 June 2026, councils gained a new power to impose financial penalties of up to £7,000 in connection with serious Category 1 hazards in privately rented homes. Separately, failure to comply with an improvement notice can result in prosecution or a civil financial penalty of up to £40,000.
Where arrears and property-condition issues occur together, they should be dealt with separately and properly documented. Our guidance on documenting rent arrears correctly and our landlord and tenant eviction services cover the possession side, while our plain English timeline of the Renters’ Rights reforms explains the wider changes affecting landlords after the first major implementation phase began on 1 May 2026.
Where this is heading
The government’s January 2026 policy statement confirmed that the new Decent Homes Standard will apply to both social and private rented homes from 2035. Criterion A requires rented homes to be free from Category 1 HHSRS hazards, making the revised system central to the future standard.
Awaab’s Law is also expanding. It already applies to social housing, with Phase 2 due to take effect on 30 November 2026 and cover a wider range of serious hazards. The government has said it will consult on extending Awaab’s Law to the private rented sector; as of September 2026, that private-sector consultation has not yet been published.
Landlords therefore should not treat the revised baseline indicators as a checklist to postpone until 2035. Existing duties under the Housing Act 2004 and fitness-for-human-habitation legislation already apply.
For disputes over who bears the cost of remedial works in blocks or mixed-use buildings, our commercial lease solicitors in London can review the relevant repairing covenants. Our note on recent Property Chamber fee changes is also useful before a tribunal application.
Civil disrepair proceedings are dealt with according to the applicable court procedure, with allocation affected by factors including the value and complexity of the claim and the remedies sought. Our explainer on choosing the right court route for a civil dispute provides further background. Where rented property forms part of an estate, our probate solicitors in London can advise on the additional ownership issues.
Get your position checked against the new system
Whether you are a tenant dealing with unsafe housing or a landlord updating compliance procedures, the practical question is the same: how would the property be assessed under the current 21-hazard HHSRS?
Send us any inspection reports, photographs, correspondence and notices you have received. Speak to our solicitors in North London on 020 3581 9293 or email info@atalawsolicitors.com.