Your Rights

Housing and the DDA

Summary: Your housing and accommodation rights under the DDA.

• Who has rights under the Act?
• Who has duties under this part of the Act?
• The 'less favourable treatment' provisions
• Reasonable adjustments
• What the act does not cover
• If discrimination occurs
• About this guide
• More information

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Who has rights under the Act?

The Act gives rights to disabled people - those with a "physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long term adverse effect on the ability to carry out normal day to day activities".

Who has duties under this part of the Act?

The premises provisions relating to less favourable treatment apply to those who are 'disposing' of premises. Not only may private and social housing property owners be liable under the Act for discrimination in connection the with selling, renting or managing premises but so may:

• managing agents of commercial premises
• property management agencies
• tenants management committees
• accommodation bureau
• housekeepers
• estate agents
• rent collection services.

The obligation to make reasonable adjustments applies to those letting and managing premises.

Terms of Agreements

Any term in an agreement, such as a lease, is void if its effect is to:

• require someone to do something which would be unlawful under Part III of the Act
• exclude or limit the operation of Part III
• prevent someone making a claim under Part III.

(Part III of the Act is the part which includes the premises provisions).

The 'less favourable treatment' provisions

It is unlawful for anyone with power to dispose of premises to discriminate against a disabled person, in:

• the terms on which he offers to dispose of those premises to the disabled person
• refusing to sell or refuse to sell or let property to a disabled person.

It is unlawful for a person managing any premises to discriminate against a disabled person occupying the premises in the way he allows the disabled person to use any benefits or facilities:

• by refusing or deliberately omitting to allow a disabled person to make use of any benefits or facilities
• by evicting a disabled person or subjecting them to any other detriment (such as harassment).

What is meant by "discriminate"?

Discrimination means treating a disabled person less favourably for a reason relating to their disability than others, to whom that reason does not / would not apply, would be treated without justification.

Justifications for less favourable treatment

If housing providers have treated a disabled person less favourably, they will have to prove that they had a genuine belief that one of the following justifications applied to their situation, and it must be reasonable for them to hold that belief:

• health and safety
• incapacity of the disabled person to contract
• to enable the disabled person or other occupiers to use the benefit or facility
• to enable other occupiers to use the benefit or facility.

Reasonable adjustments

From December 2006, the Act made it unlawful for a 'controller' of let premises to discriminate against a disabled person who is a tenant or who is otherwise lawfully occupying the premises. It is also unlawful for a controller of premises which are to let to discriminate against a disabled person who is considering taking a letting of the premises.

The duty to make reasonable adjustments

The duty on controllers to make reasonable adjustments falls into three areas:

• provision of auxiliary aids and services
• changes to practices, policies and procedures
• and changes to a term of the letting (this applies only to premises that have already been let to someone).

What about changes to the physical features of premises to let or that are already let?

Although there is no duty on controllers to remove or alter physical features, there are provisions in the DDA to provide that, where the situation is not already covered by the Housing Acts, a landlord cannot unreasonably withhold consent for a disabled person to make disability-related improvements to their premises.

What is a physical feature?

• any feature arising from the design or construction of the premises
• any feature of any approach to, exit from or access to the premises
• any fixtures in or on the premises
• any other physical element or quality of any land comprised in the premises

Who has rights to reasonable adjustments?

The duty to make reasonable adjustments applies in relation to disabled occupiers of the premises – which need not be the tenant. For example, it could be the disabled child of a tenant – and anyone who is disabled who is considering taking a letting of premises.

How does the duty work?

The duty to make adjustments in relation to rented premises applies very differently to the duty to make adjustments in relation to service provision. It is owed to the individual disabled person and there is no obligation to make the adjustment unless there has been a request, or would could reasonably be regarded as a request, for the adjustment by, or on behalf of, the disabled person. Once there has been a request, the duty applies to the provision of auxiliary aids and services, such as:

• information in an accessible format
• the removal or replacement of any furniture, furnishings, materials or equipment
• the replacement or provision of any signs or notices
• the replacement of any taps or door handles
• the replacement, provision or adaptation of any door bell or door entry system
• changes to the colour of any surface.

The duty to change the terms on which accommodation is provided arises where, in addition to a request having been made as outlined above, a term of the letting makes it impossible or unreasonably difficult for a disabled person to enjoy the premises or to make use of any benefit or facility which he is entitled to use; and the term would not have that effect if the disabled person did not have a disability.
For example: agreeing not to enforce the term where a 'no animals' clause is a term of the tenancy, waiving that term so that a guide dog can be kept.

What is meant by “reasonable steps”?

The Act does not define “reasonable”. However, the statutory Code of Practice provides a number of factors that may be taken in to account in determining what is “reasonable”:

• the effect of the disability on the individual disabled person
• the effectiveness of any proposed step
• the extent to which it is practicable to take the steps
• the financial and other costs of making the adjustment.

Impossible or unreasonably difficult

The duty to make adjustments arises where a practice, policy or procedure, or a term of the letting, or the absence of an auxiliary aid or service, makes it impossible or unreasonably difficult for a disabled person to enjoy premises which are let or make use of associated facilities and benefits. The Act does not define "impossible or unreasonably difficult".

Victimisation

In addition to the general victimisation provisions, there are also specific provisions which prohibit a landlord from treating a tenant less favourably because of costs incurred in complying with the reasonable adjustment duty.

What the act does not cover

The Act does not make unlawful anything done to :

• comply with other legislation
• safeguard national security.

The premises parts of the DDA do not apply where:

• the person with power to dispose of the premises, or a near relative of his, lives on the premises
• and shares parts of the premises with other people
• and the shared accommodation is not storage accommodation or a means of access
• and the premises are small premises.

If discrimination occurs

If you need further advice, you can contact disability organisations (such as RNIB), Citizens Advice Bureaux or law centres.

Ultimately, disabled people can take claims forward to county courts (sheriff courts in Scotland). In England, Wales and Northern Ireland most cases will be heard in the small claims court. Claims must be brought within six months of the act of discrimination.

About this guide

This guide outlines the delivery of housing services as covered specifically in the Premises' part of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA). The Act was amended by the DDA 2005 to impose a duty on certain premises providers (all those letting or managing premises) to make reasonable adjustments to enable disabled people to occupy their homes or to use benefits or facilities.

More information

Download our Housing and the DDA: DDA Factsheet 9 (Word)

Useful links

• What to do if you experience discrimination
• Sources of information about the DDA.

• Definition of disability under the DDA
• Access to goods, facilities and services, and public authority functions under the DDA
• 'Reasonable adjustments’ and the DDA
• Disability equality duty (DDA) for the public sector.

• Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).
• Registration as blind or partially sighted.

Return to DDA homepage.

Content author: DDAEnquiries@rnib.org.uk

Last updated: 28/07/2008 16:39