Renting a business property: tenant responsibilities

When renting a property for your business, you have some responsibilities by law - but most will depend on what it says in the lease.

Health and safety

You must carry out a health and safety risk assessment in the workplace and take action to remove any hazards.

You’ll normally be responsible for:

You’re also responsible for providing:

  • a reasonable temperature
  • enough space, ventilation and lighting
  • toilets and washing facilities
  • drinking water
  • safe equipment

The Health and Safety Executive’s ‘Workplace health, safety and welfare: a short guide for managers’ has more details.

Your landlord is responsible for any aspects of health and safety written in the lease, for example in communal areas. You must take reasonable steps to make sure your landlord fulfils these responsibilities.

If you get into a dispute with your landlord, you need to keep paying rent - otherwise you may be evicted.

If you do not follow health and safety rules

You can be prosecuted if you do not follow health and safety rules.

The main law covering health and safety at work in the UK is the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and local councils are responsible for making sure you follow the law.

Read the Health and Safety Executive’s ‘Health and safety regulation: a short guide’.

Repairs and maintenance

Your lease should say who is responsible for repairs and maintenance of the property.

Moving out

When you move out, you may have to pay for certain repairs, or return the property to the state it was in when you first rented it. The repairs you’ll need to make are called ‘dilapidations’ and should be written in the lease.

Any responsibility that is not mentioned in the lease will usually be yours as the tenant.

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