Compensation for Disrepair: How Much Can You Claim

The calculation follows a two-part structure used by courts and tribunals across England.

The first part is general damages: a percentage reduction of your rent for every month the disrepair affected your enjoyment of the property. Courts typically land between 25% and 50% depending on severity (Anthony Gold Solicitors, 2026). For properties declared unfit for human habitation under the Fitness for Human Habitation Act 2018, awards can reach 100% of rent. A tenant paying £1,200 per month with a serious damp problem ignored for eight months could be looking at general damages of £2,400 to £4,800 from this element alone.

The second part is special damages: quantified, provable losses. This covers damaged clothing or furniture, medical expenses if the disrepair caused illness, and higher energy bills from a broken boiler. These are added on top of the rent reduction figure.

What courts look at when fixing the percentage: how much of the property was affected, how long the issue persisted, whether you reported it formally and when, and whether the landlord had a reasonable opportunity to fix it before failing to act. Severity is not just about what broke, it's about what you lost the use of. A broken boiler in July hits differently than one in January.

Across active claims in 2026, typical awards fall into rough bands by issue type.

Damp and mould: Between £3,000 and £12,000, with the higher end applying where health impacts are documented (Qredible, 2026). Mould causing respiratory symptoms or aggravating asthma pushes awards toward the top of that range. Under Awaab's Law and what private renters can claim, landlords now face strict statutory response times: damp and mould must be investigated and addressed within 14 days of a report. Miss that window and liability increases significantly.

Structural defects, roof leaks, subsidence: Often £5,000 to £20,000-plus, reflecting both the seriousness of the hazard and the extended periods these issues typically go unresolved (Qredible, 2026).

Broken heating or no hot water: Awards typically sit between £1,500 and £6,000 depending on duration and season. A boiler left unfixed through winter is a much stronger claim than one broken in late spring. More on what to do when your landlord won't fix your boiler.

Electrical hazards: Compensation varies widely but courts treat electrical safety failures seriously, especially with EIESR breaches. The landlord electrical safety certificate obligations matter here.

Gas safety failures: One of the most serious categories. A missing gas safety certificate on its own can support a Rent Repayment Order for up to 12 months' rent, separate from any disrepair compensation. See the breakdown on gas safety certificate breach and tenant compensation.

These figures are not guaranteed outcomes. They reflect the range seen in settled and adjudicated claims. Your actual award depends on your rent level, the duration, and the evidence you hold.

Awaab's Law, which applies to private rented sector properties from 2026, sets out mandatory response timeframes that didn't exist before. Emergency hazards including structural failures, gas leaks, and severe flooding must be investigated and resolved within 24 hours. Damp and mould must be investigated within 14 days, with a written report provided within a further seven days (LetCompliance, 2026).

The significance for compensation claims is this: previously, tenants had to argue about what counted as a 'reasonable' timeframe for repairs. Now there are statutory deadlines. If your landlord missed the 14-day damp investigation window, they are in breach of a specific legal obligation, not just a general duty of care. That makes establishing liability considerably more straightforward.

Cost is explicitly not a defence. Under current guidance, landlords are required to carry out repairs regardless of expense (LetsafeUK, 2026). A landlord who tells you repairs are 'too expensive right now' has no legal basis for that position.

For tenants, this means the threshold for building a credible disrepair claim is lower than it was two years ago. You still need documentation, but the legal framework now works more directly in your favour.

The quality of your evidence determines whether your claim settles quickly at a fair figure, or drags. Courts and tribunals are not going to take your word for it, and neither is your landlord's insurer.

You need, at minimum:

• Written reports of the disrepair, ideally by email or text so you have a timestamp. Verbal reports are almost impossible to prove.
• Photographs and video, dated, showing the condition of the property. Take these when the problem first appears and at regular intervals after that.
• Your landlord's responses, or their silence. Screenshot ignored messages. Forward unanswered emails to yourself.
• Medical evidence if you're claiming personal injury. A GP letter linking your symptoms to the property conditions significantly increases the value of your claim.
• Receipts for damaged belongings if you're claiming special damages.

The period that matters starts from when you first formally notified your landlord, not from when the problem began. If you reported a leak verbally in March but by email only in May, your compensation period typically starts in May. Send that email.

Once you have this documentation, sending a formal letter before action to your landlord is usually the first step before any court or tribunal proceedings.

Disrepair claims in England go through the county court as a civil claim, or through the First-tier Tribunal for certain housing matters. Before issuing proceedings, you're expected to follow the Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Disrepair, which requires you to notify your landlord formally and give them a reasonable opportunity to respond. That process is covered in detail in our housing disrepair protocol UK guide.

Many claims settle before reaching a courtroom. A solicitor's letter backed by solid evidence and a credible claim value is often enough to prompt a landlord to offer a settlement. The no-win-no-fee model works well here because it aligns the solicitor's incentive with yours: they only get paid if you win, so they won't take a claim they don't think is worth pursuing.

Remedies available to you include:

• Damages (the compensation figure calculated as above)
• A court order requiring the landlord to carry out repairs
• Costs, meaning your landlord pays your legal fees if you win

Reporting the disrepair to your local council's environmental health team runs in parallel to a compensation claim and doesn't replace it. Council enforcement can compel repairs but cannot award you money. You need a court or tribunal for that.

Remedy can help you work out what your claim is worth before you commit to anything. The Remedy platform gives you a free instant assessment of your situation, checks your landlord's compliance record, and gives you a clear view of what you're owed and what to do next.

Disrepair compensation and Rent Repayment Orders are separate legal routes, but they can run alongside each other.

A Rent Repayment Order applies when your landlord has committed a specific housing offence: operating an unlicensed HMO, failing to comply with an improvement notice, or committing certain other violations. If both apply to your situation, the combined value can be significant. A tenant paying £1,200 per month whose landlord runs an unlicensed HMO and has ignored damp for nine months could be pursuing a Rent Repayment Order worth up to £14,400 (12 months' rent) alongside a disrepair compensation claim worth £3,000 to £7,000.

Those aren't exotic cases. They're fairly common, particularly in houses in multiple occupation. The unlicensed HMO Rent Repayment Order guide explains the RRO route in detail.

Remedy checks both simultaneously. When you submit your situation, the platform reviews your landlord's compliance across licensing, deposit protection, gas safety, and repair obligations at the same time, so you don't miss a parallel claim that's sitting right next to the one you already know about.