Is this allowed? Inspector taking photos of rented property?

[AintNobodyHereButUsChickens]

My mum's lived in her rented house for 20yrs, her landlord died a while ago and passed the house to his daughter. The house is "maintained" (I use the term very loosely...) by a letting agent and every 6 months someone comes from the letting agent to inspect the house. A few days ago he came for the inspection and asked if he could take photos of every room. Apparently it's a 'very new thing' that's been written into new contracts and all new tenants from the last few weeks have to agree to this Surely that can't be allowed?! My mum refused to let him and he said she was the 14th person to refuse this month!

I'm not sure of the legalities but it's certainly very usual. Of course it will be the easiest way for the agent to inform the LL of the state of the property and to identify what may need to be done. It also stands as a useful record of inspections.

I don't understand why she would refuse.

On the legal side - if it is indeed in the contract and the tenant refuses, that would be potential grounds to not renew the contract at the end of the current term. I doubt many LLs would take that option though if the tenant is a good tenant in all other ways.

I am a landlord and would never do that. Itt is not required by anyone and is an invasuion of privacy. In your mothers tenancy agreement there should be a phrase that the landlord will ensure "quiet enjoyment" of the property. Inspections are to check if there are any maintenance needs and that the tenant is not damaging the property more than acceptable wear and tear, subletting or any of the type of things you see on tv. They happen

Is it that new? We’ve been renting a few years now and the estate agents have always taken pictures on inspections. Why would you be so against it?

My agents done this every inspection

It’s in her favour to allow the photos as if they try to claim damage later there’s proof.

So your mum is being very silly to refuse.

My agents do this on each inspection and have done for 10 years

It's normal to take extensive photographs before a tenant moves in and after they move out, as a record of the state of the property before-and-after rental. For an inspection in the middle of the tenancy the landlord or agent might want to take photos of things that matter, but excessive photography could be seen as infringing your right to quiet enjoyment, though good bloody luck enforcing anything.

IMHO photographs of specific damage or concern are reasonable. A handful of overview photographs of rooms may be reasonable, considering for example excessive mess and dirt can be a pest or fire hazard. Snap snap snapping hundreds of photographs of everything under the sun is bang out of order. (And letting agents have been known to do that, even to the extent of rifling through the dirty laundry basket!)

The landlord cannot unilaterally change the contract, so whatever they're writing in new tenancy agreements is irrelevant. They can section 21 evict you though.

We've rented for 20 years in various houses, agents have always taken pics

I have rented for 25 years and no one has ever taken a photo of my house while I lived in it? Obviously at the beginnings and ends of tenancies for inventory but not during an inspection. Not usual at all and there's not way I would agree to it. Gross invasion of privacy.

A lot of people have moved to videos/photos for inventories.

It sounds like your mum was asked? So she could have said no?

I’m a landlord, my agent takes pictures at every inspection and, after a recent miscommunication over the back garden not being maintained, I insist on it as proof that they are bloody looking at the place!
I dgaf about the tidyness or otherwise of the property (although it did highlight that my tenant had put up horrible wall stickers that she’s getting charged for if they don’t get removed when she leaves).

She refused because she said it felt weird and intrusive. She didn't know who would be looking at them, and the inspector didn't really give much of an answer when she asked him who would see them.

Maybe she should let them, then the LL might see the state of the kitchen they refuse to change for her, or the plaster that is so old it's just falling off the walls, or the mould in her bedroom they're trying to blame her for (they said it was caused by the steam from her bathroom. Her bathroom is downstairs on the other side of the house and the mould is on her bedroom window wall right below a leaky gutter...)

Well yes exactly. That's exactly the point of it surely. What does she think will happen to the photos? The only person they could possibly be of interest to is the Landlord, and the LL needs to see them to see what needs doing.

It's the job of the agent to report problems to the LL, so that they can be fixed, and the best way of doing this is with photos. I think, considering she wants repairs doing, she was rather stupid to refuse.

Why does it matter who sees them? They’re photos of someone else’s house, not her own. Yeah it has her stuff in, but she’s only renting, and it’s wise for her landlords to have photographic evidence of the property.

Maybe she should let them, then the LL might see the state of the kitchen they refuse to change for her, or the plaster that is so old it's just falling off the walls, or the mould in her bedroom they're trying to blame her for (they said it was caused by the steam from her bathroom. Her bathroom is downstairs on the other side of the house and the mould is on her bedroom window wall right below a leaky gutter...)

Well yes. It’s irrefutable then.

Never had pictures taken other than for inventory. 6 monthly inspections for a 20year tenant seems extreme too, especially as the new landlord doesn't give a shit about the maintenance.

But then if the agent had asked if he could take pictures of the issues, rather than in general I expect your mum would have agreed.

I used to work for a letting agent doing property inspections and photos were the norm. That said In the letter we sent with the appointment it always said that photos may be taken and they were within their rights to refuse.

I only ever took photos of specific issues, so a new stain on the carpet or a crack in the wall, enough to give context but not showing the room as a whole. If they ask again (and they probably will) your mum is within her rights to ask to see the photos, I often showed tenants what I had pictured regardless of whether or not they asked.

I get it can seem intrusive but they were really helpful to monitor issues, is that crack in the wall getting any bigger, for example.