A legionella risk assessment examines a property's hot and cold water systems for conditions where legionella bacteria can grow — stagnation, tepid temperatures, aerosol-forming outlets — and sets the control scheme: temperature monitoring, flushing regimes, tank inspections.
Landlords have a legal duty to assess and control the risk from legionella. For most dwellings the controls are simple, but they must exist, be recorded, and be maintained — especially in blocks with stored water, communal systems, or vulnerable residents.
Duties come from the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and COSHH 2002, with the approved code of practice L8 and technical guidance HSG274 Part 2 setting out what landlords must do for hot and cold water systems.
Regulatory frameworks differ across the UK — see the city pages below for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland specifics.
Yes — the duty applies to all rented homes, though for a simple combi-boiler flat the assessment and controls are straightforward. Blocks with tanks or communal systems need more.
Water sampling isn't routinely required in dwellings — the requirement is a current risk assessment and working control scheme. Reviewing annually and after any system change is the accepted standard.
Stored hot water should be at 60°C or above, delivered at 50°C+ (55°C in healthcare), and cold water kept below 20°C — the checks Kaarr schedules as recurring tasks.
The legal duty is a suitable and sufficient risk assessment kept up to date — reviewed regularly and whenever the water system or its use changes. An annual review, with routine monitoring tasks in between (like monthly temperature checks), is the standard approach.
Local guides for housing providers across the UK
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