Court injunction allows access to NPH home for essential safety visits for the lifetime of the tenancy

We have recently been granted a court injunction to allow us to gain access to a resident’s home for essential safety visits. The injunction order is for the lifetime of the tenancy – this means that we can force entry for any essential servicing, inspections, and property repairs going forward.

When it’s necessary to gain access to a home for any essential safety visit, we write to residents in advance of the visit and offer to rearrange the visit at the resident’s convenience. We provide support if needed to allow the safety check to be carried out. Sometimes residents are reluctant to grant us access to their homes for all sorts of reasons including physical health barriers, worry about being alone with a tradesperson, needing a translator or even because they are worried that their home is not fit for visitors. We happily work with residents to overcome these barriers so please just let us know how to make these visits easier for you.

In this recent case, unfortunately the resident would not engage with us after multiple visits and letters and refused to allow us access to their home for an essential gas safety check. These safety checks are really important because they keep residents and their neighbours safe and are a legal obligation for the landlord. Having refused multiple appointments and all offers of support we were forced to seek a court injunction.

The injunction means that NPH is permitted to force entry by changing the locks if access is not granted by the tenant for essential visits. The resident in this case lives in a block of flats so it isn’t just their safety at risk but also the safety of their neighbours.

Injunction orders often come with the condition that the defendant must pay the claimant costs for making the claim. In this particular case, the tenant has been ordered by the court to pay NPH a sum of £1,680.

Please work with us if we need to visit you for an essential safety check and let us know if we can make it easier for you. We will provide support to help you feel comfortable with our visit – legal action like a court injunction is only considered as a last resort, please work with us before it gets to this point. Please call us on 0300 330 7003 for a discussion about how we can support you with these essential safety check visits.