Awaab's Law timescales: 10, 5 and 3 working days and 24 hours explained

Regulation 2 of the 2025 Regulations defines a working day as any day other than a Saturday, a Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday or a bank holiday in England and Wales. Ten working days is therefore never less than two calendar weeks, and is longer whenever a bank holiday falls inside the period. The 24 hour emergency timescale is the only one measured in hours rather than working days, and it runs through weekends and bank holidays.

The guidance treats the day the landlord becomes aware as day zero, with day one being the next working day. A report made on a Friday afternoon, a Saturday or a bank holiday therefore has the same day one: the next working day. The deadline calculator below applies the England and Wales bank holiday calendar for you.

Every timescale is triggered by the landlord becoming aware of a potential hazard. The guidance is clear that awareness is not limited to a formal report through the repairs line. A landlord becomes aware when the issue is first reported to any of its employees, the guidance's own example being a tenant mentioning damp to a maintenance officer. Where a managing agent for the landlord, or a wider part of the landlord's business, becomes aware of the potential hazard, that is also likely to establish the landlord's awareness.

For contractors, the guidance says the position is likely to depend on whether the contractor is legally acting as an agent of the landlord, and recommends legal advice. Where a third party who is not an agent notifies the landlord, the landlord becomes aware on the date it is notified, not on the date the third party first learned of the issue.

Timescales measured in working days begin the day after the triggering event. The exception is the 24 hour timescale for emergency hazards, which starts as soon as the landlord becomes aware of the potential hazard.

After every investigation, whether or not a hazard is found, the landlord must give the tenant a written summary of the findings within 3 working days of the investigation concluding. The guidance says the summary must:

• ·State whether the investigation found a significant or emergency hazard, and what that hazard is.
• ·Where action is required, specify that action and a target timeframe for beginning and completing it.
• ·Where no action is required, say so and give the reasons.
• ·Include information on how to contact the landlord.

The July 2026 Phase 2 guidance adds a written summary template and clearer expectations on what tenants must be told and when. Where a hazard turns out to be outside the scope of Awaab's Law, the summary still has to be sent, explaining why no Awaab's Law action is needed, and any repair then follows the landlord's ordinary repairs policy.

Relevant safety work: 5 working days

Where the investigation identifies a significant hazard, the landlord must complete relevant safety work within 5 working days, starting on the day after the investigation is completed. Relevant safety work is the work that stops the hazard presenting a significant risk of harm. Temporary measures count towards making the home safe: the guidance gives cleaning mould and providing a dehumidifier while wider works are scheduled, or temporary heaters while a boiler is fixed, as the kind of first step a reasonable landlord would take. Taking a temporary measure does not stop the clock on fixing the underlying problem.

Supplementary preventative work: 5 working days, or within 12 weeks

Supplementary preventative work is the longer term work that stops the hazard recurring. It must begin within 5 working days of the investigation concluding. Where that is not possible, the landlord must take steps within those 5 working days, and the work must begin as soon as reasonably practicable and in any case within 12 weeks. The guidance describes 12 weeks as a backstop, not a target. Its worked example is a damp and mould hazard caused by a missing damp proof course and a broken bathroom ventilation system, where specialist availability prevents an early start: the landlord must book the specialists and start as soon as possible, and no later than 12 weeks.

Where relevant safety work cannot be completed within the timescales, the landlord must secure the provision of suitable alternative accommodation for the household at its own expense, until the relevant safety work is completed. The guidance says the decision whether to leave the home sits with the tenant, who may choose to stay with family or friends instead and retains the right to return at any point. Suitability depends on the household's needs, including space, location, accessibility, pets and the expected length of stay, and the accommodation must not itself be affected by hazards or cause overcrowding. Throughout, the landlord must keep the tenant updated, including advice on staying safe if they remain in the home, and should record the advice given.

An emergency hazard is one that poses an imminent and significant risk of harm to the health or safety of an occupier: something a reasonable landlord, with the relevant knowledge of the tenant and the home, would make safe within 24 hours. The landlord must investigate and complete the relevant safety work within 24 hours of becoming aware. Since 27th October 2025 this duty has applied to every HHSRS hazard except overcrowding, not only damp and mould. The guidance's examples of emergency hazards include, but are not limited to:

• ·Gas or carbon monoxide leaks
• ·Broken boilers
• ·Total loss of water supply
• ·Electrical hazards such as exposed wiring
• ·Major leaks
• ·Broken external doors or windows that present a risk to home security
• ·Prevalent damp and/or mould that is having a material impact on a tenant's health
• ·Broken or rotten ceiling joists with high risk of collapse
• ·Broken balcony railings

Where an emergency is made safe but further preventative work is needed, that work must begin within 5 working days and the written summary is due within 3 working days, unless all the work is finished first. Where the emergency is made safe and no further work is needed, no further Awaab's Law action is required.

From 30th November 2026 the Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 extend the significant hazard timescales beyond damp and mould to excess cold, excess heat, falls, structural collapse, fire and explosions, electrical hazards and domestic hygiene. None of the numbers on this page change. What changes is how many reports start a clock. Our Phase 2 explainer covers the hazard list, the two tests and what landlords should have in place before the date.

Scotland has its own Awaab's Law. The Investigation and Commencement of Repair (Scotland) Regulations 2026 came into force on 6th October 2026 and apply to private landlords as well as social landlords, for damp and mould only. The skeleton is similar but the detail is not:

Scotland requires the repair to be started within 5 working days where England requires safety work to be completed; Scotland has a 20 working day completion deadline for social landlords where England has none beyond the safety work; and Scotland has no 24 hour emergency tier and no alternative accommodation duty. See our Awaab's Law in Scotland guide and the side by side comparison.

Both examples assume a social landlord in England, a significant damp and mould hazard, and an investigation that concludes on its deadline day. These are the latest dates the regulations allow, not targets. Finishing the investigation earlier brings every later date forward.

Example 1: a report in November 2026

Example 2: a report before Christmas 2026

• ·The Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025, SI 2025/1042, in force 27th October 2025.
• ·Awaab's Law: guidance for social landlords, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
• ·Awaab's Law Phase 2: guidance for social landlords, published 13th July 2026.
• ·Awaab's Law: guidance for landlords in Scotland, Scottish Government.

This page describes the law as it stood on 28th October 2026. It is general information, not legal advice. Our Awaab's Law guide covers who the law applies to, enforcement and the background to the legislation.