In 2020, a two-year-old boy named Awaab Ishak died in Rochdale, England. His death was a consequence of prolonged exposure to mould, after his parents’ frequent requests to their local authority to tackle damp and mould in their rented property were ignored. In October 2025, a new law named after Awaab was introduced in England, placing new obligations and timescales onto social landlords to tackle damp and mould in their properties. Now, a similar law is coming to Scotland, affecting both social and private landlords. Scheduled to be introduced in October 2026, Awaab’s Law will have a significant impact on landlords in Scotland.
This article will examine the common causes of damp and mould, the treatment options available, and landlords’ new responsibilities to tackle damp and mould under Awaab’s Law.
Understanding the Causes of Damp and Mould
Damp and mould are both serious problems affecting every kind of tenement in Scotland. They are both caused by excess moisture in a building. Damp is caused by moisture damaging the fabric of the tenement, such as timber roof beams, windows or external stone walls. Mould is a fungus which can grow in areas affected by damp.
When treating damp or mould, it is important to find out what’s causing the excess moisture, and tackle that correctly. Otherwise, it will just return after the mould has been cleaned off and the stains painted over. There are lots of potential causes to bear in mind. For example, damp can be caused by leaky or overflowing gutters, which allow water to spill onto walls and damage them. It can also be caused by groundwater coming up from the foundation of your building, which is called rising damp.
Windows are another area which can be affected by damp and mould, due to their exposure to rain. It may also be caused by a lack of good ventilation in areas of the building which experience a lot of moisture, such as bathrooms and kitchens. There are also some lifestyle choices people make which can contribute to or worsen damp and mould, such as drying clothes indoors and not regularly opening windows to air out the building.
The way to treat damp and mould will depend on what has caused it. Some fixes are straightforward and inexpensive, while others are more complicated.
If you suspect that the damp and mould is being caused by something inside your own flat, such as poor ventilation in the kitchen or bathroom, these can be fixed by yourself. Start by checking that windows and air vents can be opened and are kept free of debris. You may need the help of a contractor to check that any extractor fans in the flat connect properly to a duct and are vented externally, taking excess moisture all the way out of the building.
If the cause of the damp and mould is in a common area of your building, such as the roof, foundations or external walls, you will need to work with your fellow owners to do the repair. Common areas are parts of the building which everyone uses, and for which owners share responsibility and costs. Repairs such as updating the damp-proof course along the ground floor to stop rising damp, repairing a leaky roof or replacing damaged gutters typically require a process which starts with checking your titles to establish who is responsible, and how to split costs correctly. If your titles don’t mention the relevant part of the building, or aren’t workable, you can refer to the Tenements (Scotland) Act 2004 which offers guidance to tenement owners on how to carry out common repairs.
Once you have worked out how to split costs, contact all the relevant fellow owners and inform them about the repair. You may need to hold a meeting and get a majority vote in favour of carrying out the repair, depending on the type of work which needs to be done and what your titles say. If the majority of the fellow owners support you, you can proceed to get quotes from contractors, pool your funds together, and organise the repair.
Awaab’s Law: What Landlords Need to Know
Awaab’s Law will place new obligations on landlords, both social and private, to investigate and resolve complaints of damp and mould in their rented properties. Timescales will be put in place which landlords will be legally obliged to stick to, in order to minimise the impact of damp and mould on their tenants’ health. As of 6th October 2026, as the legislation currently stands, landlords will have 10 working days to investigate a complaint of damp and mould by visiting the property. Tenants must be provided with a written summary of the landlords’ findings within three working days after the investigation, and the landlord then has five working days in which to organise any necessary repair works.
In the meantime, before this legislation comes in, there are things landlords can do to get ahead of damp and mould. Regularly visiting your properties, working with your fellow owners to organise annual gutter cleans and roof checks, and providing tenants with information on how to ventilate the flat correctly can all help to prevent damp and mould before they become a threat to the health and safety of your building and its tenants.
Find out more about damp and mould, and Awaab’s Law, at Under One Roof’s website. Under One Roof is Scotland’s dedicated tenement charity, which gives free information and support to housing professionals and tenement owners, including landlords.
