The Impact of the Health & Safety at Work Act 2015 on Landlords
The Health & Safety at Work Act 2015 was passed through parliament and came into effect on 4 April 2016. Following this legislation, we updated Click Property Managements’ business processes to ensure we are compliant.
Who is affected by the new legislation?
If you do something for hire or reward, such as let out your property to a tenant in return for rent, service, or some other form of payment, you are deemed to be a “PCBU” (Person Carrying out a Business or Undertaking).
As your Property Manager, Click Property Management is a PCBU. As a Landlord, you are also a PCBU. Together, we have a joint responsibility to ensure everyone working on the properties we manage are appropriately qualified and have their own Health & Safety systems and processes in place.
Where Click fully manages your properties we will collect this information directly from any contractors we engage. You can request to see this information if you wish.
Landlord obligations under the Act
All PCBUs have a duty to provide safe and healthy conditions for everyone who comes into contact with their respective “work environments” (for example contractors, sub-contractors, property managers, tenants, and/or the public).
You cannot contract out your responsibility, nor can you obtain insurance to protect yourself against the fines or reparations that can be imposed under this legislation.
Under this Act, Click Property Management is no longer able to permit any work to be completed by any Landlords, unless you are appropriately qualified, insured and competent to do that task.