Furniture and Furnishings (Fire Safety) Regulations 1988
- All upholstered furniture and furnishings provided in a furnished letting must comply with the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire Safety) Regulations 1988, this is a legal requirement, not guidance
- Compliant items carry a permanent label (often attached to a seam or frame) stating compliance with the 1988 Regulations. Look for the label before putting furniture in a rental property
- Items covered: sofas, armchairs, sofa beds, futons, beds (including headboards and divans), mattresses, pillows, cushions, padded garden furniture, and children's furniture where upholstered
- Items NOT covered: curtains, carpets, bedclothes, mattress covers, sleeping bags, these do not require the fire safety label
- Antique furniture made before 1950 is exempt. Furniture purchased before 1 January 1988 is also exempt, but in practice, any furniture old enough to pre-date the regulations should not be put in a rental property on safety grounds regardless
Electrical appliance safety in furnished properties
- There is no requirement to PAT test (Portable Appliance Test) electrical appliances in rental properties, but landlords have a duty under the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 to ensure electrical equipment they supply is safe
- Best practice: visually inspect all supplied appliances before each tenancy. Look for damaged cables, cracked plugs, and signs of overheating. Replace any appliance that fails visual inspection
- PAT testing is voluntary but provides evidence of due diligence if an appliance later causes injury or damage. Consider PAT testing for appliances over 5 years old or any second-hand appliances
- White goods: washing machines, fridges, and dishwashers supplied by the landlord are the landlord's responsibility to maintain and repair. Include them in your annual gas safety and EICR appointment routine for visual inspection
- Product recalls: register appliances on the manufacturer's recall database. A recalled appliance that causes a fire and was not replaced creates significant liability, the government's product safety database (gov.uk/guidance/product-recalls-and-alerts) lists current recalls
Inventory best practice for furnished properties
- A detailed, photographic inventory is essential for any furnished letting, it is the evidence base for deposit deductions at the end of the tenancy
- Inventory format: room-by-room listing of all furniture, appliances, fixtures, fittings, and their condition at the start of the tenancy. Photograph each item and note any pre-existing damage (scratches, stains, wear)
- Check-in report: conduct the inventory at the start of the tenancy, in the tenant's presence if possible, and ask the tenant to sign it. A tenant who signs the inventory cannot later dispute the recorded condition
- Deposit scheme adjudication: when claiming deposit deductions for damage to furnished items, the adjudicator will compare the check-in and check-out inventory. Without a check-in record, claims for damage to furniture are very difficult to sustain
- Fair wear and tear: landlords cannot deduct for normal wear and tear, a sofa that has faded or shows light use after 3 years of tenancy is fair wear and tear, not damage. Deductions for furniture must reflect the item's age and expected lifespan, not the cost of replacement with new
Furnished lettings and tax
- Furnished Holiday Lettings (FHL): a special tax category for short-term holiday lets meeting specific occupancy thresholds (available 210 days per year, actually let 105 days per year). The FHL regime provided significant tax advantages, but was abolished from 6 April 2025. FHL properties are now taxed as ordinary rental income
- Section 24 (mortgage interest restriction): applies to furnished and unfurnished lettings equally, finance costs can only be deducted as a basic rate tax credit, not as a full deduction against rental income. This applies to all residential lettings from the 2020/21 tax year onwards
- Replacement of domestic items relief: landlords cannot claim a deduction for the original cost of furnishing a property (unlike under the old 10% wear and tear allowance, abolished April 2016). However, replacement of domestic items, replacing a sofa with a like-for-like sofa, can be deducted as a revenue expense
- Capital items: if furniture is provided at the start of the tenancy as part of the original fit-out (new purchase), this is a capital expense and is not deductible as a revenue expense. Only replacements of existing items qualify for replacement of domestic items relief
- Furnished vs unfurnished from a letting perspective: furnished properties typically command a premium rent in urban markets but attract tenants who expect more maintenance. Unfurnished properties attract longer-term family tenants and have lower ongoing costs. The tax treatment is now broadly equivalent
Maintaining furnished properties, practical obligations
- Repair of supplied furniture: the tenancy agreement should specify that the landlord will repair or replace furniture that fails through fair wear and tear, and that the tenant is responsible for damage. This mirrors the repair obligation structure for the property itself
- Annual inspection: include furniture condition in any mid-tenancy inspection report. Photograph anything that has deteriorated significantly so you have a contemporaneous record
- Mattress replacement: best practice is to replace mattresses between long tenancies (5+ years) regardless of apparent condition. A used mattress is considered unhygienic by most tenants and is difficult to let effectively
- White goods maintenance: supply only appliances you are prepared to repair or replace promptly. A broken washing machine in a furnished flat is a habitability issue, failure to repair within a reasonable time is a breach of the landlord's repair obligations
- End of tenancy: conduct the check-out inventory on the day of key handover or immediately after. Photograph all rooms. Compare with check-in inventory and note any damage (separate from wear and tear). Provide a schedule of proposed deductions to the tenant in writing within 10 days