Your rights · the law · what happens next
Damp in a rented home is a legal issue — not just a cleaning job.
Landlords in Croydon already have legal duties to deal with damp and mould, and Awaab’s Law is tightening the rules. Get clear, accurate answers: what the law actually requires, whose responsibility it is, and how to act.
- Independent — not a damp-proofing sales site
- Law explained at its real scope, and dated
- Written for Croydon’s housing, not a national template
If you're a tenant
Your rights, the timescales, and what to do when mould keeps coming back.
- What is Awaab's Law — and does it apply to private landlords? Awaab's Law forces landlords to fix damp, mould and other serious hazards within fixed deadlines. As of June 2026 it applies to social housing only — councils and housing associations. It has not yet been extended to private landlords; that is expected no earlier than 2027, after consultation. Read the answer →
- Do landlords have to fix damp and mould? In most cases, yes. A landlord must fix damp and mould caused by disrepair or the condition of the building — leaks, failed damp-proofing, poor ventilation, or a structure that lets water in. They can't simply blame the tenant's 'lifestyle' to avoid acting where the real cause is the property itself. Read the answer →
- How long does a landlord have to fix damp? For private landlords there's no single legal deadline — damp must be fixed within a 'reasonable time' of being reported, which for serious mould means days to a few weeks, not months. Social landlords now face strict Awaab's Law deadlines: investigate within 10 working days and make safe within a further 5. Read the answer →
- Is my landlord responsible for condensation and mould? Often, yes. If condensation and mould are driven by the building — cold uninsulated walls, no working extractor fans, single-glazing, or poor ventilation you can't fix — it's the landlord's responsibility to remedy. It's only genuinely the tenant's issue where a reasonable household couldn't keep an otherwise sound home damp-free. Read the answer →
- What does a damp survey cost — and what does it involve? An independent damp survey usually costs around £150–£400 for a focused inspection, and more if it's part of a full building survey. It involves a surveyor inspecting the damp, taking moisture readings, identifying the real cause, and giving you a written report with recommended works. Be cautious of 'free surveys' from firms that sell the treatment. Read the answer →
- Rising damp vs penetrating damp vs condensation: what's the difference? Condensation forms on cold surfaces and corners (especially in winter) from moist indoor air. Penetrating damp comes through walls or roofs from outside — patchy and often worse after rain. Rising damp climbs from the ground up to about a metre, leaving a tide-mark. Most 'damp' in Croydon homes is actually condensation, and true rising damp is rare. Read the answer →
- Can I withhold rent because of damp? Almost never safely. Withholding rent doesn't cancel your duty to pay it, so you can fall into arrears and risk eviction — even when the damp is the landlord's fault. There's a narrow, formal 'repair and deduct' route with strict steps, but for most tenants reporting, escalating to the council, and a disrepair claim are far safer. Read the answer →
- How do I report damp to my landlord (in writing)? Report damp in writing — email or a letter, not just a phone call — describing the problem, where it is, any health effects, and asking the landlord to investigate and fix it within a reasonable time. Attach dated photos and keep a copy. This creates the dated record that protects your rights if you later need to escalate. Read the answer →
- Is black mould on walls dangerous, and what should I do? Yes, black mould can be a genuine health risk — it can trigger or worsen breathing problems, allergies and asthma, and is most dangerous for babies, children, elderly people and anyone with a respiratory condition. Clean small patches safely, improve ventilation, and report it to your landlord, because the lasting fix is removing the damp that feeds it. Read the answer →
- What does my tenancy agreement say about damp — and can a clause make it my problem? A tenancy clause can ask you to ventilate and report problems, but it cannot remove the landlord's legal duty to keep the home fit and in repair. A term that tries to make the tenant responsible for damp caused by the building's condition is generally unenforceable — statutory repairing duties override the contract. Read the answer →
If you're a landlord or agent
What you're legally on the hook for, what's coming with Awaab's Law, and how a compliant inspection protects you.
- What is Awaab's Law — and does it apply to private landlords? Awaab's Law forces landlords to fix damp, mould and other serious hazards within fixed deadlines. As of June 2026 it applies to social housing only — councils and housing associations. It has not yet been extended to private landlords; that is expected no earlier than 2027, after consultation. Read the answer →
- Do landlords have to fix damp and mould? In most cases, yes. A landlord must fix damp and mould caused by disrepair or the condition of the building — leaks, failed damp-proofing, poor ventilation, or a structure that lets water in. They can't simply blame the tenant's 'lifestyle' to avoid acting where the real cause is the property itself. Read the answer →
- How long does a landlord have to fix damp? For private landlords there's no single legal deadline — damp must be fixed within a 'reasonable time' of being reported, which for serious mould means days to a few weeks, not months. Social landlords now face strict Awaab's Law deadlines: investigate within 10 working days and make safe within a further 5. Read the answer →
- What does a damp survey cost — and what does it involve? An independent damp survey usually costs around £150–£400 for a focused inspection, and more if it's part of a full building survey. It involves a surveyor inspecting the damp, taking moisture readings, identifying the real cause, and giving you a written report with recommended works. Be cautious of 'free surveys' from firms that sell the treatment. Read the answer →
- Rising damp vs penetrating damp vs condensation: what's the difference? Condensation forms on cold surfaces and corners (especially in winter) from moist indoor air. Penetrating damp comes through walls or roofs from outside — patchy and often worse after rain. Rising damp climbs from the ground up to about a metre, leaving a tide-mark. Most 'damp' in Croydon homes is actually condensation, and true rising damp is rare. Read the answer →
- Damp inspection for a rented property in Croydon: what you need to know A damp inspection for a rented Croydon property is a surveyor's visit that diagnoses the real cause of damp or mould, takes moisture readings, checks the building inside and out, and produces a written report with recommended works. For landlords it pinpoints the right fix and provides evidence the problem was taken seriously. Read the answer →
- What does my tenancy agreement say about damp — and can a clause make it my problem? A tenancy clause can ask you to ventilate and report problems, but it cannot remove the landlord's legal duty to keep the home fit and in repair. A term that tries to make the tenant responsible for damp caused by the building's condition is generally unenforceable — statutory repairing duties override the contract. Read the answer →
- How do the Decent Homes Standard and EPC rules relate to damp in rented homes? The Decent Homes Standard requires rented homes to be free of serious hazards like damp, and minimum energy-efficiency (EPC) rules push landlords to insulate and improve homes — which also reduces condensation. Both reinforce existing damp duties. Note that extending the Decent Homes Standard to private renting is part of the Renters' Rights reforms and is still being implemented. Read the answer →
Why damp is so common in Croydon homes
Much of Croydon’s rented housing is exactly the kind where damp arises. Victorian and Edwardian terraces around Thornton Heath (CR7), South Norwood (SE25), Selhurst and Addiscombe (CR0) have solid brick walls with no cavity to insulate, so the inside surfaces stay cold and attract condensation.
Converted flats in older houses often lost their original ventilation in the conversion, and post-war blocks in New Addington (CR0) and across the borough have cold concrete surfaces where moist air condenses in corners. The result, in home after home, is black mould blamed on “lifestyle” when the real driver is the building.
That mix matters for the law, too. Croydon has a large social housing stock — council and housing-association homes — which is already covered by Awaab’s Law (in force since 27 October 2025, with strict timescales to investigate and fix damp). It also has a very large private rented sector, which those fixed deadlines have not yet reached — expected no earlier than 2027, and still subject to consultation.
So the honest picture across the borough is two-track: social tenants have firm new deadlines now, while private renters rely (for the moment) on landlords’ existing legal duties and on Croydon Council’s environmental-health team. Every answer here is written with that distinction kept straight.
Covering CR0, CR2, CR4, CR7, CR8 and the SE19/SE25 fringes of the borough.
Right about the law
We cite landlords’ actual duties (Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 s.11; Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018) and explain Awaab’s Law at its real scope — social housing now, private renting still to come.
Local to Croydon
Written for the borough’s solid-wall terraces, converted flats and post-war blocks across CR0, CR7, CR8 and the SE25 fringe — not a national template with the town name swapped in.
Independent of the trade
We don’t sell damp-proofing, so there’s no incentive to over-diagnose expensive work. Our job is the honest answer, then a referral to a qualified surveyor if you need one.
Inspections will be carried out by a qualified, accredited surveyor. Their name, accreditations and reviews will appear here once a partner is appointed — we won’t show a badge we haven’t earned.