Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Newsroom from a report by Property118. Read the original article for full details.

Labour Member Calls for Mandatory Damp and Mould Inspections in Private Rented Sector

A Labour party member has called on the government to introduce a legal requirement for landlords to arrange regular inspections of private rented homes for damp and mould. Jacky Peacock, founder of Fairer Housing CIC, says the private rented sector should be subject to routine damp and mould inspections.

What is being proposed

Under the proposal outlined by Peacock, private rented sector homes would undergo regular damp and mould inspections, with the resulting certificates uploaded to the PRS Database.

If adopted, this would create a new legal obligation for landlords to arrange the inspections on a recurring basis, rather than leaving damp and mould checks to ad hoc or reactive arrangements.

Why it matters for letting agents and inventory clerks

If such a requirement were introduced, letting agents and inventory clerks could see demand grow for structured, documented damp and mould inspections across their managed portfolios. Certification linked to a central database would also raise the stakes on record-keeping: inspection evidence would need to be accurate, dated and stored in a form suitable for upload to the PRS Database.

For agents managing properties on behalf of landlords, the proposal points towards more formalised property condition monitoring. Firms with established inspection and reporting processes may be better placed to support landlords in meeting any future legal requirements.

Context: damp and mould in the PRS

Damp and mould remain a persistent concern in the private rented sector, and inspection regimes have been the subject of ongoing debate among policymakers, landlords and tenant groups. Peacock's call adds to that discussion by proposing a specific enforcement mechanism: mandatory inspections with certificates recorded on the PRS Database.

At this stage, the proposal is a call by an individual party member rather than confirmed government policy. Letting agents and inventory clerks should treat it as an indication of the direction of debate around private rented sector housing standards, and monitor developments as any potential policy takes shape.

What happens next

No timetable or formal consultation is confirmed in the source material. Any change of this kind would require government action to introduce a legal requirement, and landlords, agents and clerks would need clear guidance before new duties took effect.

The Property AI will continue to follow developments on damp and mould inspection requirements affecting the private rented sector as they emerge.