I received a phone call from a letting agent saying that after 4th April 2016 there will be mandatory meth testing for all rental properties pre-letting and that landlords will be penalised severely if traces of meth is being detected. Can you confirm that it is correct?
No, we cannot confirm that statement as being absolute correct. However the date 4th of April is telling (being from when the new Health
and Safety at Work Act comes into effect) so this matter warrants further examination.
Related article: How will landlords be affected by the new workplace health and safety law?
Firstly, to date we have received no notification from any government agencies requiring landlords to carry out mandatory methamphetamine tests at rental
properties although we recommend that our members carry out routine testings (pre and post tenancy) as good practice.
Secondly, upon forwarding this enquiry to the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment, we obtained the following response:
… [upon confirming with then] Housing Market Policy, Communication and Compliance teams within MBIE Market Services, as well as Worksafe… [it has been confirmed that MBIE has] not released the information about mandatory methamphetamine testing. To reiterate … MBIE is working on changes to the Residential Tenancies Act for new requirements for insulation and smoke alarms. The proposed requirements for smoke alarms and insulation will not include mandatory testing requirements for methamphetamine. Details are available online here.
