What are Tenants’ Security Rights?
Tenants have certain responsibilities when renting a home or apartment from a landlord or property management company, such as paying their rent on time. However, they also have certain rights. One of the most important rights they have is knowing they will be kept safe and secure while in the home or on the property. So, what exactly do these rights entail?
First and foremost, tenants always have a right to expect they will be kept reasonably safe and secure while on the property. This means that all landlords must meet all state, and possibly even local, laws pertaining to the security of the property.
In Georgia, this means that all doors must have the ability to lock and any window must also have locks in proper, working condition. It also means that common areas, including parking lots, have proper lighting to deter criminals and keep all tenants safe. In the case of Georgia apartment buildings, fences must also be erected around the building to keep out unwanted guests.
In addition to having these security measures in place, Georgian landlords and property management companies must also ensure those elements are in good, working condition at all times. When a fence is broken, it should be fixed as soon as possible. When a light in a hallway or parking lot burns out or breaks, the landlord also needs to fix or repair it.
These are the standard safety measures that all landlords must adhere to. They do not include measures such as video surveillance systems in parking lots or hiring a security company that can provide security guards to patrol the parking lot. However, there may be instances where landlords are required to take these extraordinary measures to guarantee the rights their tenants have to be kept safe.
When a landlord can foresee that crime could happen on the property, and be a danger to the tenants, the landlord does have the responsibility to take these additional measures.
Tenants also have the right to know that, when there is more than one tenant on the property, that those other tenants do not have a criminal history. To guarantee this right, landlords should run criminal background checks on every applicant. They must also ensure that no illegal activity is happening on their property, such as a tenant dealing drugs out of their apartment unit.
Both tenants and landlords have rights and responsibilities. One of the biggest, and most important, rights tenants have is to be kept safe and secure at all times while on the property. To ensure these rights, the landlord has certain responsibilities they must meet in order to keep their tenants safe. When they fail to do so, they can be held liable for any injuries or property damage a tenant sustains due to the landlord’s negligent security measures. An accomplished negligent security lawyer could help advocate for tenants and protect their rights.
