S.I. No. 146/1993:

HOUSING (RENT BOOKS) REGULATIONS, 1993.

HOUSING (RENT BOOKS) REGULATIONS, 1993.

CONTENTS

1. Citation.

2. Commencement.

3. Interpretation.

4. Application.

5. Provision of Rent Book.

6. Entries in Rent Book.

7. Recording of rent and other payments.

S.I. No. 146 of 1993

HOUSING ( RENT BOOKS ) REGULATIONS, 1993.

In exercise of the powers conferred on the Minister for the Environment by section 5 of the Housing Act, 1966 (No. 21 of 1966), as amended by section 24 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992 (No. 18 of 1992), and by section 17 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1992 , which powers are delegated to me by the Environment (Delegation of Ministerial Functions) (No. 2) Order, 1993 ( S.I. No. 128 of 1993 ), I, EMMET STAGG, Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, hereby make the following Regulations:--

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Housing (Rent Books) Regulations, 1993.

2. These Regulations shall come into operation on the 1st day of September, 1993.

3. (1) In these Regulations--

"address", in the case of a landlord or agent, means place of abode or place of business or, where the landlord or agent is a company, the address of the company's registered office;

"house" includes any building or part of a building used or suitable for use as a dwelling and any outoffice, yard, garden or other land appurtenant thereto or usually enjoyed therewith.

(2) In these Regulations any reference to an article or Schedule is a reference to an article or Schedule of these Regulations.

4. These Regulations shall apply to every house let for rent solely as a dwelling unless the house--

( a ) is let to a person only for the purpose of conferring on that person the right to occupy the house for a holiday, or

( b ) is a dwelling to which Part II of the Housing (Private Rented Dwellings) Act, 1982 (No. 6 of 1982) applies.

5. (1) The landlord of a house to which these Regulations apply shall--

( a ) on the commencement of a tenancy, or

( b ) where a tenancy exists on the date on which these Regulations come into operation, within two months from such date,

provide the tenant of such house with a rent book or other documentation to the like effect (referred to in either case in these Regulations as "the rent book").

(2) The landlord shall, on provision of the rent book, enter therein in clearly legible writing--

( a ) the address of the house,

( b ) the name and address of the landlord and, if the landlord has duly appointed an agent, of such agent,

( c ) the name of the tenant,

( d ) the term of the tenancy,

( e ) the rent reserved under the tenancy and when and how it is to be paid,

( f ) the amount and purpose of any payments to be made by the tenant to the landlord, in addition to the rent, for services provided by the landlord or otherwise, and when and how each such payment is to be made,

( g ) the amount of any rent paid in advance,

( h ) the amount and purpose of any deposit paid by the tenant and the conditions on which such deposit is repayable, and

( i ) where the tenancy commences on or after the date on which these Regulations come into operation--

(i) the date of commencement of the tenancy, and

(ii) particulars of the furnishings and appliances provided by the landlord for the exclusive use of the tenant.

(3) The rent book shall include in clearly legible writing a statement of information as set out in the Schedule and the landlord shall enter in such statement, at the end of paragraph 11, particulars of the name, address and telephone number of the housing authority in whose functional area the house is situate.

6. (1) The tenant shall make the rent book available for the purpose of enabling the landlord to make therein any entry required by these Regulations.

(2) Where a change takes place in any of the particulars required under article 5 (2) to be entered in the rent book, the landlord shall, not later than one month after the operative date of such change, enter particulars of the change in the rent book.

7. In respect of each payment of rent or amount referred to in Article 5 (2) ( f )--

( a ) where payment is handed in person by the tenant or by another person acting on behalf of the tenant to the landlord, the landlord shall, on receipt, either--

(i) record in the rent book the amount, purpose and date of the payment and the period to which it relates, or

(ii) provide the person making the payment with a receipt stating the amount, purpose and date of the payment and the house and period to which the payment relates, or

( b ) where payment is made otherwise than in accordance with paragraph ( a ) of this article, the landlord shall, not more than 3 months after receipt, either--

(i) record in the rent book the amount, purpose and date of the payment and the period to which it relates, or

(ii) provide the tenant with a written statement of the amount, purpose and date of the payment, and

the landlord shall sign each record made and receipt provided in accordance with paragraphs (a) and (b) (i) of this article.

SCHEDULE

1. This statement of information is included in the rent book in accordance with the Housing (Rent Books) Regulations, 1993. It does not purport to be a legal interpretation.

2. The tenant of a house is, unless otherwise expressly provided for in a lease, entitled to quiet and peaceable enjoyment of the house without the interruption of the landlord or any other person during the term of the tenancy for so long as the tenant pays the rent and observes the terms of the tenancy.

3. Notice to terminate a tenancy (notice to quit or surrender) must be in writing and be served not less than four weeks before the date on which it is to take effect.

4. The landlord is prohibited from impounding the goods of a tenant to secure recovery of rent unpaid.

5. The landlord is obliged to provide a tenant with a rent book for use throughout the term of the tenancy. The landlord must enter the particulars relating to the tenancy in the rent book, and, in the case of a new tenancy, complete the inventory of furnishings and appliances supplied with the house for the tenant's exclusive use.

6. The landlord is obliged to keep the particulars in the rent book up to date. Where the rent or any other amount due to the landlord under the tenancy is handed in person by the tenant, or by any person acting for the tenant, to the landlord, the landlord must, on receipt, record the payment in the rent book or acknowledge it by way of receipt. Payments not handed over directly, for example those made by bankers order or direct debit, must, not more than 3 months after receipt, either be recorded by the landlord in the rent book or acknowledged by way of statement by the landlord to the tenant.

7. The tenant is obliged to make the rent book available to the landlord to enable the landlord to keep the particulars in it up to date.

8. The landlord of a private rented house is obliged to ensure that, from 1 January, 1994, the house complies with the minimum standards of accommodation laid down in the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations, 1993. The standards apply to rented local authority houses from 1 January, 1998. The Regulations do not apply to houses let on a temporary or holiday basis, local authority demountable dwellings and communal type accommodation provided by health boards and certain approved non-profit or voluntary bodies. The standards relate to structural condition, provision of sinks, waterclosets, baths/showers, cooking and food storage facilities, safety of electricity and gas installations, availability of adequate heating, lighting and ventilation and maintenance of common areas, etc.

9. The duties of a landlord referred to in paragraphs 5 to 8 above may be carried out on the landlord's behalf by a duly appointed agent. Any reference in this statement to 'house' includes a flat or maisonette.

10. Copies of the Housing (Rent Books) Regulations, 1993 and the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations, 1993 maybe purchased from the Government Publications Sale Office, Sun Alliance House, Molesworth Street, Dublin 2, or from the housing authority.

11. Responsibility for the enforcement of the law relating to rent books and standards rests with the housing authority for the area in which the house is located. The name, address and telephone number of the relevant housing authority are as follows:

DATED this 10th day of June, 1993.

EMMET STAGG,

Minister of State at the Department of the

Environment.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These Regulations apply to rented dwellings, with certain limited exceptions. With effect from 1 September, 1993, the Regulations require a landlord (including a local authority) to provide each new tenant with a rent book (or other documentation serving the same purpose) at the commencement of the tenancy. Persons with tenancies which commenced before 1 September, 1993 must be given rent books before 1 November, 1993, All rent and other payments under the tenancy must be acknowledged in writing by the landlord. In addition, the rent book must contain specific particulars relating to the tenancy including, inter alia, the name and address of the landlord and of his agent (if any), the term of the tenancy, the amount of the rent and of any other payments to be made by the tenant to the landlord, details of any advance rent or deposit paid and, in the case of new tenancies, the date of commencement of the tenancy and particulars of furnishings and appliances provided by the landlord for the tenant's exclusive use. The rent book must also include a basic statement of information for the tenant which is set out in the Schedule to the Regulations.