Awaab’s Law Phase 2: Are Your Repairs Systems Ready for November 2026?

Awaab’s Law came into force for the social rented sector on 27 October 2025. This UK legislation was introduced to hold social housing landlords accountable for investigating and fixing serious health and safety hazards within strict legal timeframes.

From 30 November 2026, its scope widens considerably. With the second phase approaching next month, social landlords need to ask whether their repairs and maintenance systems can meet the new requirements.

In this guide, we explore what Phase 2 of Awaab’s Law is and offer advice on how to ensure your repairs system is ready.

What is changing in Phase 2?

Phase 1 required landlords to address all emergency hazards and all damp and mould hazards that present a significant risk of harm to tenants within fixed timeframes. After 30 November 2026, as part of Phase 2, the same approach will apply to a further group of significant hazards:

• Excess cold
• Excess heat
• Falls on the level, on stairs and between levels
• Structural collapse
• Fire and explosions
• Electrical hazards
• Domestic hygiene, including personal hygiene and food safety

A third phase is planned to extend the rules to all remaining Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) hazards, apart from overcrowding. 

Guidance published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government makes clear that, in the meantime, the phased approach gives landlords no leeway. Existing duties to keep homes safe and free of serious hazards continue to apply.

The timeframes landlords must meet

The clock starts when a landlord becomes aware of a potential hazard. Under the Regulations, landlords must:

• Investigate and complete safety work for emergency hazards within 24 hours
• Investigate potential significant hazards within 10 working days
• Complete safety work within 5 working days of an investigation that finds a significant hazard
• Issue a written summary to the tenant within 3 working days of an investigation concluding, in most cases
• Begin, or take steps to begin, preventative work within 5 working days, and start it as soon as reasonably practicable and within 12 weeks at the latest
• Secure suitable alternative accommodation if safety work cannot be finished in time

Whether a hazard is “significant” depends on the individual tenant. The test is whether a reasonable landlord, knowing what it knows or ought to know about the household, would make the hazard safe within 15 working days. 

A landlord’s own budget or staffing is not a valid consideration. A hazard also does not need to reach category 1 under the HHSRS to be in scope.

How to prepare your repairs systems for Phase 2

It’s largely more of the same in terms of preparing your repairs and maintenance systems for Phase 2. However, because of the lengthy list of additional hazards to watch for, you should revisit your processes and consider a few new points.

Know when the clock starts

A landlord is likely to be treated as “aware” of a hazard when an employee hears about it, whether that is a housing officer on a visit or a maintenance operative who notices a problem. It can also happen when a third party reports it. 

Awareness through contractors depends on whether they act as the landlord’s agent, so legal advice is recommended. Your systems need to capture every report, whatever the channel, and record exactly when it was received. 

Your escalation routes need to work just as reliably, so that a comment made to an operative reaches the right team immediately.

Make triage person-centred

Landlords must consider the age, health and circumstances of the household when deciding whether a hazard is significant or an emergency. That depends on accurate, up-to-date tenant records, handled in line with UK GDPR and the extra care required for health data. 

Check that frontline staff can see this information when a repair is logged, and that they are prompted to ask the right questions. The guidance suggests asking about children, older adults, health conditions, mobility needs and communication preferences.

Plan for remote and in-person investigations

Investigations can be done remotely, for example using photos or videos from the tenant. But if a tenant asks for an in-person inspection, you must arrange one, and the 10 working day period starts again. Make sure your system can support both routes, and that the findings of earlier investigations are easy to see.

Check competence and capacity across the new hazards

Phase 2 brings in electrical, fire, structural and heating-related issues, many of which require qualified specialists. Investigations must be carried out by someone competent, and electrical hazards, for example, should be dealt with by a qualified electrician. 

Review your contractor agreements to confirm they reflect Awaab’s Law obligations, including reporting timescales. Consider whether your supply chain can reach properties within 5 working days, and whether you can show the steps you have taken where specialists or materials are not immediately available.

Get written summaries and tenant updates right

Summaries must set out whether a hazard was found, what action will follow and the target timeframes, and must give contact details. The 3 working days apply to the landlord issuing the summary, not the tenant receiving it, so record when it was sent. 

Landlords must also keep tenants updated on the progress of work, so build that communication into your workflow rather than relying on manual follow-up.

Keep a clear audit trail

Landlords have a defence if they have used all reasonable endeavours to comply, for example when they cannot access a home. The guidance recommends detailed records of every visit attempt, call, email and letter. Evidence of what you did and when may protect you if a case reaches the Housing Ombudsman or the courts.

Understand what is out of scope

Fire hazards in communal areas already covered by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 are excluded, as is cladding remediation. Hazards caused by a tenant’s breach of contract are also out of scope. 

The guidance is clear, though, that landlords should not assume damp or mould is caused by tenant “lifestyle”, and they must still act on safety concerns that fall outside Awaab’s Law under other duties.

Supporting compliance with ROCC

Meeting these Awaab’s Law timeframes depends on joined-up, real-time information from the first report of a problem to the final sign-off. ROCC’s repairs and maintenance software provides end-to-end support, from a tenant’s first contact through to sending out the operative and capturing management information.

Here are some standout tools in our award-winning housing software that help landlords act faster and evidence what they have done.

• The Tenant Self-Service Toolset lets tenants report issues 24/7 with photos and videos
• Repair Diagnostics helps staff log repairs with the right priority
• Automated scheduling and emergency repairs tools help teams respond quickly
• Contractor management gives real-time visibility of work and costs
• Inspections, surveying and document and media management keep a clear record of what was found and done

If you would like to talk through how ROCC could support your Phase 2 preparations, get in touch with the team for a no-obligation conversation.