There are 2.73 million dwellings in Scotland. Of those, 23% are socially rented and 13% are privately rented. That means over 980,000 dwellings are in the rented sector. Around 1.9 million Scots live in rented accommodation of one sort or another.
Scotland’s housing stock is amongst the oldest in Europe. There are 177,000 pre-1919 tenement flats still occupied and just shy of 350,000 terraced homes built between 1945-1982. The age of the housing stock, coupled with the inevitable cold and damp weather can lead to damp and mouldy living conditions, with the associated health problems that follow.
The Scottish Government, following the lead of the UK Government “Awab’s Law”, has introduced statutory measures designed to address the issue. Awab’s Law is named after Awaab Ishak, a two-year-old boy who died in December 2020 after prolonged exposure to mould in his family’s social housing flat in Rochdale. In England, Awab’s Law was introduced through the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 and associated regulations.
Awab's Law came into force in Scotland on 6 October, having been introduced by the Investigation and Commencement of Repair (Scotland) Regulations 2026, alongside amendments to the Housing (Scotland) Bill. The regulations apply to both social and private landlords. The overarching aim of the regulations is to create a statutory duty to ensure that homes are safe and healthy. Those aims are to be achieved by the introduction of a timetable within which investigations and action must take place.
Once a complaint of damp or mould is made, the landlord should attend to the following:
- Investigation: Must be completed within 10 working days by a competent person, which could include the landlord if suitably qualified
- Reporting: A written summary of the investigation must be provided to the tenant within 3 working days
- Repair Commencement: If work is required, it must begin within 5 working days of completing the investigation However, there is an important exception.
If the timescales cannot be met, landlords must provide written reasons and an expected completion date. For issues not caused by building defects, landlords should guide tenants to appropriate advice. It is possible that many landlords in both social and public sectors will struggle to complete investigations, report and commence work within 18 working days. In these circumstances where timescales cannot reasonably be met landlords should utilise this exception, providing reasons why the timescale cannot be met and some practical guidance on how they seek to resolve issues.
Awab’s law has been in force in England & Wales since 27 October 2025 where it is restricted to the social rented sector. It remains to be seen what effect, if any, the introduction of Awab’s law will have on the nature and number of any claims for damages arising from damp housing conditions. DWF’s housing team down south has not to date detected a significant increase in claims where a breach of Awab’s law has been cited.
It may be early days, or it may be that the legislative changes have had the desired effect, improving response times to complaints and resulting in speedier remedial action. In Scotland, the wider application of Awab’s Law to both social and private landlords will place renewed focus on the speed and quality of responses to damp and mould complaints. While it remains to be seen whether the new regime will lead to an increase in Scottish claims, landlords should take positive action now. It would be prudent to review reporting procedures, ensure timescales are adhered to and clear records are kept, to ensure compliance with the new statutory timescales from the outset.
We would like to thank John Barrie, Senior Associate, for his contribution to this article. If you require further guidance on this issue, please contact John at john.barrie@dwf.law.
