Scotland’s damp and mould rules set strict response deadlines for letting agents from 6 October

New Scottish regulations — the Investigation and Commencement of Repair (Scotland) Regulations 2026 — take effect on 6 October. They set explicit time limits for landlords to respond to reports of damp and mould and require written communication with tenants after investigations.

• Written summary: A written summary of the investigation must be provided to the tenant within three working days of completing the investigation.
• Repairs start: Where the investigation shows repairs are required, work must begin within five working days of the investigation ending.

Practical implications for letting agents

Agents and property managers perform many of the operational tasks that determine compliance with these timescales. The regulations mean agents need to:

• Review and update procedures for handling reports, including how cases are logged and tracked against the statutory deadlines.
• Ensure clear assignment of responsibilities for who conducts investigations and who communicates outcomes to tenants.
• Reassess access arrangements and the speed of arranging contractors or specialist damp and mould experts.
• Keep detailed records of dates, actions, tenant communications and reasons for any delays.

Contractor and specialist availability is a likely constraint, particularly in rural areas. Agents must also address cases where the cause of damp or mould is unclear, requiring potential escalation to specialists. When a repair cannot start within the five working days required, the landlord (or their agent) must notify the tenant, explain the reason and document steps taken to reduce harm or impact.

The regulations place record-keeping under the spotlight. Each report should generate a single case record showing the date received, investigation deadline, investigator assignment, date the written summary was sent, and the repair-start deadline. If access problems or contractor shortages cause delays, log the reason and the tenant update at the time.

Propertymark is hosting a webinar on 1 October (2pm–3pm) to discuss practical implementation. The session will cover what constitutes a competent investigation, when to escalate a case, handling unclear causes of damp or mould, and managing situations where repairs cannot be started within the statutory timeframe. Panel contributors include Propertymark staff alongside legal and industry representatives.

Operational checklist for agents (practical steps)

• Update case-management workflows to reflect the 10/3/5 deadlines.
• Assign named investigators and communication owners for each report.
• Build or verify relationships with damp and mould specialists and local contractors.
• Create a standardised written-summary template to meet the three-working-day requirement.
• Log every tenant update and reason for delay contemporaneously.

The new regulations require faster, better-documented responses to damp and mould. Agents who update procedures, confirm contractor capacity and maintain a clear audit trail will be better placed to meet the statutory deadlines and explain any unavoidable delays to tenants.