Awaab's Law in Wales? The damp and mould rules for Welsh social landlords

The Welsh rule is wider than England's current one: it covers every HHSRS hazard except overcrowding, not just damp and mould and emergencies, and it sets a deadline to remedy the hazard, not only to investigate it. It applies to social landlords only.

The timescales

The Welsh Government's addendum to the Standard, "Responding to Hazards", sets two timescales depending on whether the risk of harm is imminent.

What counts as a significant risk

The rule applies only where a significant risk is assessed. The statutory guidance in the addendum defines it as a risk of harm to the occupier's health or safety that a competent member of the landlord's workforce with the relevant knowledge would take steps to make safe as a matter of urgency.

In deciding whether there is a significant risk and whether harm is imminent, the landlord must take into account:

• the individual circumstances of the tenant and other occupiers, including age, any physical or mental health issues and any other vulnerabilities;
• the condition of the home;
• the nature of the hazard: how likely harm is and how severe it could be in the circumstances.

That makes the investigation the evidence the whole case rests on. A record of who lives there, what was found room by room, the moisture readings and the likely cause is what shows the risk was assessed properly and the right clock applied.

The written summary plan

Where, despite best endeavours, the hazard cannot be remedied within the timescale, the landlord must give the tenant a written summary plan within 5 working days, on paper or electronically, and record in its own records that it was issued. At a minimum it must include:

• the nature of the hazard and whether it was assessed as presenting imminent harm;
• the action taken, or to be taken, to make the home safe;
• the work to be done to remedy the hazard;
• when that work is likely to start and finish;
• the arrangements to reduce the risk to the occupier in the meantime;
• how to contact the landlord, with a named person and a direct email address or phone number.

Reporting to the Welsh Government

Compliance with element 1c is reported in the detailed WHQS compliance report, with a high-level summary in each quarterly social landlord return. The addendum says the first quarterly report was due at the end of June 2026 and the full detailed report at the end of the 2026/27 financial year. The Cabinet Secretary's statement of 19 December 2025 adds that social landlords must publish their response times.

"Free from damp" still means free from damp

Element 1c sits alongside element 1b, which says homes must be free from damp. The Welsh Government's January 2026 note on immediate changes to the Standard repeats that the absence of a Category 1 damp hazard is not a pass: a home with minor dampness assessed as a Category 2 hazard does not meet the Standard either, and persistent condensation counts. Landlords must report any Category 1 or Category 2 damp scores.

Private landlords in Wales

Element 1c does not apply to private landlords. Under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016, every landlord must keep the home fit for human habitation, and the first matter the Fitness for Human Habitation Regulations list is exposure to house dust mites, damp, mould or fungal growth. The Welsh Government's December 2025 statement reminds all landlords that this includes dealing with damp and mould promptly and effectively.

How it differs from England

Where DampApp Pro fits

A Welsh landlord now has to assess the risk, the household and the cause quickly, and show its working. DampApp Pro is built for that visit:

• On site and offline: record each room, wall and defect with moisture readings and photos, with no signal needed.
• Evidence for the cause: temperature and humidity give dew point and condensation risk, so the report can separate condensation from rising, penetrating or leak damp.
• Dated photos: the report can show each photo's capture time from its EXIF data, or the time it was added.
• A report before you leave: the PDF is built on your device, with optional AI help to turn shorthand into clear wording you check.
• A letter for the household (Pro): a plain-English summary letter drafted from the survey, which you edit to cover what a summary plan must say.

Genuinely free to start: surveys work offline and free PDFs carry a small app footer. Upgrade to Pro when you're ready for your own branding, the resident letter and the full toolkit.

Frequently asked questions