What to check before you put a team in a house

Putting a crew into a house is not the same as letting a flat to a tenant, and the legal and safety obligations do not disappear because it is short-term. Whoever is arranging the accommodation — the housing provider, the site manager or the contractor — should be able to answer every line of this list before anyone moves in.

The safety paperwork

• Gas Safety Certificate — annual, current, covering the property the crew will actually sleep in. Ask to see it, not to be told it exists.
• Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) — the wiring cert, not older than five years, with no code 1 or code 2 failures outstanding.
• Smoke and CO alarms — working, on every level, tested. The law is clear; the practice varies.
• Fire blanket and extinguisher where the kitchen layout and occupancy warrant them.

Licensing and permissions

• HMO licensing — if three or more unrelated people share a property, the local authority rules apply in most areas. A "large HMO" or additional-licensing area needs the actual licence, not a plan to apply.
• Planning and change-of-use — is the property lawfully being used for short-term business lets? Some residential lets do not permit it.
• Mortgage and freeholder consent — a leasehold flat or a mortgaged house may not permit commercial lettings. A provider that has not checked is a provider to walk away from.

Insurance that actually covers it

• Landlord / serviced-accommodation insurance — not a bog-standard home policy. It must cover business lets, which standard home policies do not.
• Public liability — enough cover for a working crew in the property.
• Employer's liability — if the provider has staff involved, this is not optional.

What to ask before you hand over money

Ask for the certificates by name and a named person who stands behind them. Ask who holds the keys and the alarm codes. Ask what happens at 11pm when the heating fails on a Friday. The providers who can answer all of it without checking with someone else are the ones worth booking. The providers who go quiet on the paperwork are telling you everything you need to know.

KrewBase runs this list on every property before it is offered. If you are arranging accommodation yourself, run it too — it is the cheapest insurance on the job.