Focus on COVID-19: What you need to know about accessing tenanted properties

We all know how important it is to keep people safe during the pandemic and for us, the focus is on the health of our tenants, landlords and staff.

And with lockdowns coming and going and ‘Tiers’ varying from one area to another, it’s vital that you keep checking the latest rules for your area before making any arrangements.

The main principle is that only essential visits should be made in person, with as few people as possible inside a property at any one time. That means you should only have contractors visiting if absolutely necessary and any viewings required to secure a new tenant should be kept to a minimum.

Arranging a visit

• By law, the tenant must be given at least 24 hours’ notice and you must make sure they’re (a) not currently isolating or shielding and (b) happy for the visit to take place.
   
• Ask everyone involved with the visit:
  Do they currently have any symptoms of coronavirus?
  Have they have had or tested positive for Covid-19?
   
• If the tenant is isolating or has any symptoms, the visit should be postponed until the isolation period has come to an end and/or they’ve tested negative.
   
• Contact all parties within 24 hours of the visit to make sure there haven’t been any changes to anyone’s health that would prevent it going ahead.
   
• Ask the tenant to disinfect commonly-touched surfaces, open all the doors and put on the lights ahead of the visit, so visitors don’t need to touch handles and switches.

During the visit

• Keep the number of people from different households inside the property to an absolute minimum - this may mean visitors going in one at a time.
   
• Where possible, the tenant/s should wait outside or stay in a different room to contractors, people viewing and the landlord or agent.
   
• Sanitise your hands before entering and after leaving the property.

• Make sure everyone wears a face covering, unless they are exempt.
   
• Avoid touching surfaces as far as possible.
   
• Any discussions should ideally be held outside or later via phone or video call.

Following these rules is likely to mean visits take longer, but it’s important that nobody’s safety is compromised.

If you’ve got any queries about how we’re letting and managing your property during the pandemic, or you’re unsure about what you should be doing yourself, you can get in touch with us via email or phone.

Are you achieving the best rent? Book a lettings valuation today and find out