Landlord duties in England are spread across roughly eight separate pieces of legislation, and none of them gathers everything into a single list. That is why gaps show up in the same predictable places: the tumble dryer nobody ever signed off, the smoke alarm on a landing that was never replaced after a tenant reported it, the gas record that went to the outgoing tenant instead of the incoming one. Below is how the duties break down for a rented home in Chesterfield, and which ones carry a hard deadline and a penalty.
The fixed wiring: an EICR at least every five years
The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 require the fixed electrical installation in a privately rented home to be inspected and tested by a qualified person at intervals of no more than five years. You give the existing tenant a copy of the report within 28 days, give new tenants a copy before they move in, and supply it to the local authority within seven days of a written request. Where the report records a C1, C2 or FI code, the remedial work must be done within 28 days or sooner if the report specifies a shorter period, and you need written confirmation that it was completed. A local authority can impose a financial penalty of up to £30,000 for a breach of these regulations.
Plug-in appliances sit outside the EICR
The IET's own commentary on the 2020 Regulations states that appliances supplied through a plug and socket are not part of the fixed wiring inspection and testing process. The washing machine, the fridge freezer, the microwave, the vacuum cleaner in the cupboard and the extension lead behind the sofa are all outside the scope of the report you paid for. The duty covering them comes from elsewhere. Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 puts you on the hook for installations supplying electricity, the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 require electrical equipment you supply to be safe, and the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 gives a tenant a direct route to court over an unsafe home. Inspection and testing of the appliances you supply is how you evidence that they were safe on a given date, which is what landlord PAT testing exists to do.
Gas, alarms, furniture and EPC
Under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 you need an annual safety check on gas appliances and flues by a Gas Safe registered engineer, with the record given to existing tenants within 28 days and to new tenants at the start of the tenancy. The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015, as amended from 1 October 2022, require a smoke alarm on every storey with living accommodation and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance other than a gas cooker, plus repair or replacement once a tenant tells you an alarm has failed. Upholstered furniture in a furnished let must meet the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988. Minimum energy efficiency standards still bar letting a property below EPC band E without a valid registered exemption.
HMOs add two more duties
If you let a shared house, the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006 require the manager to have the fixed installation inspected at least every five years and, within seven days of a written request from the council, to supply a declaration as to the safety of the furniture and appliances provided. That declaration is difficult to sign honestly without test results behind it. Mandatory licensing applies to houses with five or more occupants forming two or more households, and additional or selective licensing schemes vary between councils, so check the current position with Chesterfield Borough Council rather than assuming what applies in Sheffield also applies here.
Enforcement got sharper in 2026
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 is being commenced in stages. Strengthened local authority investigation and enforcement powers were among the earliest provisions to take effect, in late December 2025, with the main tenancy reforms commencing on 1 May 2026. In practice that means a housing officer asking for your electrical, gas and alarm records expects to receive them quickly, and disorganised paperwork is now a bigger risk than it was two years ago.
The file a council officer or insurer asks for
Keep the EICR with written confirmation of any remedial work, the current gas safety record, dated evidence that alarms were tested at the start of the tenancy, and a test record listing every appliance you supply with its result and date. Most Chesterfield landlords can cover the appliance side of a single furnished house within an hour, which is where our from £50 visit rate applies, and portfolios in the same postcode are usually cheaper handled as a half day. If you want the detail of what we test and what we leave alone, the PAT testing page covers it, and the Chesterfield area page lists the towns and villages we cover on a standard visit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does an EICR cover the appliances in my rental property?
No. An EICR covers the fixed electrical installation, and the IET's guidance on the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 confirms that appliances connected by a plug and socket are not part of that inspection. Anything you supply that plugs in, such as a washing machine, fridge freezer, microwave or vacuum cleaner, needs separate inspection and testing. Landlords often assume a satisfactory EICR covers the whole property, which leaves the appliance side undocumented.
What electrical paperwork must a Chesterfield landlord give a new tenant?
Under the 2020 Regulations you must give a new tenant a copy of the current EICR before they occupy the property, along with written confirmation that any C1, C2 or FI remedial work has been completed. Existing tenants must receive a copy within 28 days of the inspection, and the local authority must receive one within seven days of a written request. Failure to comply can attract a financial penalty of up to £30,000.
How often should a landlord have appliances tested in a furnished let?
There is no fixed statutory interval for appliance testing in a private rented home, so the interval is set by risk. In practice most landlords test the appliances they supply at the start of each new tenancy, and on a rolling two-yearly cycle for long-running tenancies, which is broadly in line with the intervals suggested in the IET Code of Practice for let properties. Testing at changeover also gives you a dated record tied to a specific tenant.
Do I need an HMO licence for a shared house in Chesterfield?
Mandatory licensing applies across England to houses in multiple occupation with five or more occupants forming two or more households. Some councils also run additional or selective licensing schemes covering smaller HMOs or particular wards, and these differ from one authority to another, so confirm the current designations with Chesterfield Borough Council. Regardless of licensing, the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006 already require a five-yearly inspection of the fixed installation and a safety declaration for supplied furniture and appliances on request.
What happens if a tenant is injured by an appliance I supplied?
You could face a claim under section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 and the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018, and insurers routinely ask for maintenance and testing records when assessing a claim. Without a dated test record for the appliance, you have little to show that it was in a safe condition when the tenancy began. A test record listing each appliance, its result and the date is the simplest evidence to produce.