Is gutter cleaning a landlord responsibility in Scotland?

You’ve noticed water spilling over the side of your gutters, or maybe a damp patch appearing on a wall. Now you’re wondering whose job it is to get them cleared.

It’s a question I hear a lot, especially from people in flats and tenements.

The short answer is that it depends on who you are.

For a private tenant in Scotland, your landlord has a duty to keep the gutters in working order once you’ve told them there’s a problem.

If you own your house, it’s your job.

For flat owners in a tenement, it often depends on your title deeds, and the owners share some of it.

This is just general information, not legal advice, of course. You should always check your own tenancy agreement or title deeds before relying on it.

The law in Scotland doesn’t actually set a routine “cleaning” schedule. It talks about repair and making sure everything is in “proper working order”.

A gutter that’s blocked with moss and leaves isn’t working properly.

The rules for private tenants

A law called the repairing standard covers your rights if you rent your home from a private landlord. It’s part of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006.

This standard requires your landlord to keep the “structure and exterior of the house (including drains, gutters and external pipes)” in a reasonable state of repair.

The landlord’s duty to act starts as soon as you tell them about the issue, or if they find out some other way.

They then have to carry out the work within a reasonable time.

A landlord can’t add a clause to your tenancy agreement that makes you responsible for this kind of repair. If they have, that clause has no legal effect.

Who is responsible for gutter cleaning?

Here’s a simple breakdown for different situations.

Your situation	Who looks after the gutters?	What to check
Private tenant in a house	Your landlord.	Your tenancy agreement.
Private tenant in a flat	Your landlord, though shared parts also depend on the other owners.	Your tenancy agreement.
Owner of a house	You.	Your roofline, especially after storms.
Owner of a flat in a tenement	The owners, as your title deeds say; shared parts are a ‘common repair’.	Your title deeds and the Tenement Management Scheme.
Council or housing association tenant	Different rules apply; ask your landlord.	Your tenancy agreement.

What are the exceptions?

A landlord’s duty to repair only begins once they know there’s a problem, which is why I always suggest putting it in writing.

An email or a letter sent by recorded delivery gives you a clear record, and a photo of the overflowing gutter helps too.

What if the tenant caused the blockage?

The repairing standard doesn’t cover damage caused by a tenant not using the property correctly.

A landlord fixing damage you caused? Not happening, unless you can come to some other arrangement.

In a tenement block, like the granite ones we see all over Aberdeen, getting agreement can be tricky. For a non-emergency repair to a shared roof or guttering, you usually need a majority of owners to agree. Any owner can order emergency work to stop damage, and the owners share the cost.

The truth is, they’re both kinda right: one owner might see it as urgent, another might not.

The default rules for tenements, the Tenement Management Scheme (Tenements (Scotland) Act 2004), don’t specifically name gutters, though they do cover the roof.

How to check your specific agreement

So, where do you find the answer for your specific building?

But first… you need to be sure what your own agreement or deeds say.

For tenants, that’s your tenancy agreement. For owners, it’s your title deeds.

If you’re in a factored building, your property factor will know the rules for your block and can help organise common repairs. Your neighbours are also a good source of information.

When you’re a private tenant and your landlord doesn’t act after you’ve notified them in writing, you can apply to the Housing and Property Chamber.

This is a tribunal that handles disputes, and it’s free to apply.

Just remember that the laws in Scotland are different from those in England and Wales.

How we help with shared gutter cleaning

If you’re an owner or part of a residents’ association in a tenement or block of flats, sorting out shared maintenance can feel like a headache.

We can make it simpler.

At Sam’s Gutter Cleaning, we regularly work with property factors and residents’ associations on scheduled cleaning for whole blocks. We’re used to working on the three and four-storey granite tenements common in our area.

We handle the risk assessments, work safely around shared access and public pavements, and provide clear communication so all residents know what’s happening.

You can learn more about our work on taller buildings on our multi-storey gutter cleaning page. If you’d like a clear quote for your building, you can get a free estimate here.