Building Safety Act 2022 – Leaseholder protections and landlord certificates

Leaseholder protections came into force on 28 June 2022. From that date, for buildings over 11 metres/five storeys in height, building owners and developers are now the first port of call to pay for the remediation of historical building safety defects.
Secondary legislation then came into force, which fully brought in the leaseholder protection provisions, enabling leaseholders and building owners to establish who was responsible for funding any necessary remediation work.

Qualifying leaseholders should not pay outstanding invoices for historical building safety remediation costs that were issued before 28 June 2022. Qualifying leaseholders are now protected from all cladding-related building safety costs and most non-cladding costs.

You are a ‘qualifying leaseholder’ if your property is in a building above 11 metres (or five storeys) and if on 14 February 2022:

• your property was your main home, meaning it was the home where you spent most of your time;
•  you owned no more than three dwellings in the United Kingdom in total – dwellings outside England will not be covered by, or count towards, leaseholder protections.

You are also a qualifying leaseholder if you have bought your property since 14 February 2022, but either of the two points above was true for the property on that date.

Importantly, landlords must provide a completed landlord certificate demonstrating that they can pass on costs to leaseholders before they can do so, or demonstrate that the costs do not relate to works covered by the Building Safety Act 2022. 
 
Leaseholders must also confirm their qualifying status and new legal rights by completing a Deed of Certificate that they must provide to their landlord.
 
A deed of certificate confirms whether you are eligible for the leaseholder protections. You can choose to complete and send a deed of certificate to your landlord at any time. You must complete a deed of certificate if your landlord notifies you that they require one, either because you are selling your property or there is a relevant defect in the building. If you do not complete it, you will not benefit from the leaseholder protections for qualifying leaseholders.

When your landlord requires a deed of certificate, they must notify you in writing by pre-paid first-class letter and by email, if they have your email address. They must give you at least eight weeks to provide the certificate and an additional four weeks if requested.

Further information about the information above can be found on the gov.uk web pages below;

Landlords Certificate
Mandatory information required from leaseholders and building owners

Deed of certificate
Leaseholder protections: deed of certificate - frequently asked questions