How to childproof your rental home - Part 2 of 2
Following on from part 1, we take a look at some things you can do as a tenant to help make your rental home a safer place for you and your young family as well as what you should do if you need to raise certain matters with your landlord.
After all, knowing that you’re raising your children in a safe and secure environment is vital and will mean as parents you can dedicate your time to bonding, teaching and enjoying precious moments with your little ones as opposed to trying to dodge mishaps or near-misses and living in constant worry.
Things tenants can do to themselves to childproof their home
Most rooms contain several plug sockets, most of which are likely to be within easy reach of toddlers and children. To increase safety and protect your little ones from the electrical risks that plug sockets can bring, there are many childproof socket covers available.
Magnetic locks or childproof locks are another great way to improve the safety of your rental home without making any modifications or changes. They can be used on cupboards to help safely store away anything you don’t want your children getting their hands on, such as cleaning products, matches/lighters, or any other potentially hazardous materials.
Get familiar with the settings on your hot-water heater so that you can minimise the risk of burns and scalds from hot water. Once toddlers reach a certain age they often become fascinated with twisting and turning things, which could easily lead to them entering the bathroom and playing with the taps. Of course, it’s easy to see the risk here with the hot tap releasing water that can scald them. It’s recommended that you ensure your hot-water heater is set to less than 120 degrees to minimise the risk of hot water burns.
Discuss more serious issues with your landlord
Stairs in a rental property can be a frightening hazard for your young children, so many parents install a stair safety gate to keep falls at bay. Window blinds also pose a serious threat with long loops and cords often the cause of horrifying strangulation accidents. Sharp corners, sticking nails and rough edges are all prone to causing cuts, bumps and tears to youngsters who are dashing around from room to room.
These sort of concerns require modification or repair to the property, so you should discuss them with your landlord to that they can take the appropriate measures and actions to make your rental home a safer place. For things such as the installation of a stair safety gate, you will need to get your landlords approval before making this sort of change.
If you aren’t getting a response from your landlord, or aren’t receiving the response you were hoping for, you can try negotiating with them. You could offer to handle the work and then discount the cost of materials and tools from the rent. Be polite with your landlord, but firm - after all, you want to feel safe and secure at home.
If you get no joy from your landlord with regards to improving the safety of your rental property, record the problem areas and get in touch with your local council. Tenants have the right to rent a hazard-free property and the Environmental Health department at your local council will be able to inspect your home and issue fines to your landlord if they feel they aren’t carrying out their responsibilities as well as issue them an improvement notice.
Security at your rental property
A home security system is the most obvious way to improve the security of your home. Modern security systems now offer all sorts of useful tools, such as motion sensors and an instant wireless connection to a smart phone. Smart positioning means you can not only increase the protection of your family, your belongings and the property, but also keep an eye on your little ones while you’re in another room.
Again, this is something that you will have to discuss with your landlord as the installation process would need their approval.
To learn more about how our professional lettings team here at CPS Homes can help you find the perfect rental home in Cardiff don’t hesitate to get in touch. You can contact us by calling 02920 668585, e-mailing enquiries@cpshomes.co.uk or by popping into one of our three branches for a face-to-face chat.
The information contained within this article was correct at the date of publishing and is not guaranteed to remain correct in the present day.
