When a tenant says "you're legally required to…", there are three possible answers: they're right, they're wrong, or you can't tell from what you've checked. Getting this right matters more than getting it fast: a confident reply that misstates the law is the kind of thing a redress scheme or a tribunal will pick up.
1. Pin down exactly what's being claimed
Write the claim as a plain sentence: "The landlord must repair the boiler within seven days." Note any Act or regulation the tenant names, exactly as they put it. Often the named law is right but the detail (a deadline, an amount, who it applies to) isn't.
2. Find the provision on legislation.gov.uk
legislation.gov.uk is the official, free source for UK legislation, including revised versions that show amendments. Go to the specific section or regulation, not just the Act. Most housing complaints involve a small number of provisions: the repairing and fitness duties in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, deposit protection in the Housing Act 2004, the Tenant Fees Act 2019, and the gas, electrical and alarm safety regulations.
3. Check four things
- Does it say what's claimed? Read the words. A duty to repair isn't the same as a duty to repair within a set time; a right to a refund isn't the same as a right to compensation.
- Does it apply in England? Housing law differs across the UK. Check the extent shown on the page, but be careful: some Welsh legislation shows its extent as "England and Wales" because that's one legal jurisdiction, while only applying in Wales. The Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 is the common example.
- Was it in force when the events happened? Look at the version for the relevant date. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 is changing several rules in stages, so the answer can depend on when something happened.
- Is it still in force? Check it hasn't been repealed or revoked, and whether there are amendments not yet shown in the revised text (legislation.gov.uk flags these as outstanding effects).
4. Know what kind of source it is
| Source | Can it create an obligation? |
|---|---|
| Acts of Parliament and regulations | Yes: this is the law |
| Government guidance | Usually not by itself. It explains the law or sets expectations |
| Redress scheme codes of practice | Binding on members as a condition of membership, not law |
| Good practice | No, though following it helps if a complaint escalates |
Don't let guidance stand in for law in your reply. "Government guidance recommends…" and "the law requires…" are different statements.
5. Say what you found, not more
If the provision supports the claim, say so and cite it. If it doesn't, don't say the tenant is wrong: say what you checked and that you couldn't find support for that specific point. Absence of support in what you looked at isn't proof there's no such rule, and "we've checked X and Y and they don't require Z" is harder to dispute than "that's not the law".
Where there's real legal risk, such as possession, harassment, or significant money, take legal advice.
This is what Casebriar's verification step does for the provisions it covers: it fetches the live text from legislation.gov.uk, checks the quoted words exist, that the provision applies in England, wasn't repealed and was in force on the date of the events, and won't let guidance be presented as a legal duty. Anything it can't support is marked "not established", never "false".
Casebriar separates a tenant complaint into its issues, checks the legal claims it covers against legislation.gov.uk and lists the records you’ll need. It’s in a free pilot with letting agents in England.
Join the pilotSources
Related
- How to respond to a tenant complaint: a process for letting agents
- Separating the issues in a tenant complaint
- Repair complaints and section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985
- Responding to damp and mould complaints from tenants
- Rent increase complaints and section 13 notices
- Tenant requests for the landlord's name and address