Licence conditions

Your private rented property licence will have conditions on it.

The licence holder or managing agent must meet these requirements throughout the entire duration of the licence.

The licence conditions depend on what kind of licence it is. For selective licensing the conditions depend on where the property is (called a ‘designation’). 

Read the conditions for HMO licenses issued under the mandatory or additional schemes (PDF, 383kb).

You can also read about properties under the selective licensing scheme:

• in designation 1 (PDF, 179kb)
• in designation 2 (PDF, 177kb)
• in designation 3 (PDF, 186kb)
• in designation 4 (PDF, 178kb)

If we think the property has specific issues, we will address them separately to the license. They may be added as an extra condition.

Some licensing conditions mean you must comply with specific documents or rules, including:

• Southwark's HMO standards (PDF, 137kb)
• the LACORS fire guidance (PDF, 878kb)
• domestic private rented property: minimum energy efficiency (standard - landlord guidance)
• electrical safety standards and PAT testing
• The Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988
• Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005

Fire risk assessments for multi-occupied properties

Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 any multi-occupied residential property needs to have a fire risk assessment on the common parts. A multi-occupied property is an HMO, a block of purpose built flats or a house converted into flats.

The landlord or building owner is responsible for making sure the fire risk assessment is carried out and updated regularly. Specialist companies can carry out the assessment for them but they must make sure that it includes:

• considering who may be at risk from fire
• removing or reducing the risk from fire as reasonably practicable
• providing general fire precautions to deal with any risk left
• providing protection if flammable or explosive materials are used or stored
• creating a plan to deal with any emergency and, in most cases, to keep a record of findings
• reviewing findings when necessary