Legionella

Landlords have a duty to make sure that tenants are not exposed to any risks of their health. This means that they must make sure that the risk of Legionella exposure is controlled and monitored. The ACoP L8 details that they need to do a detailed risk assessment surrounding it and to have an effective monitoring regime in place.

HSE state that a Legionella risk assessment has to determine whether:<

• Water is stored & circulated in your building
• The water temperature is between 20-45 degrees.
• There are sources of nutrients like rust or scale or any organic matters
• There are other factors that might encourage bacteria to multiply
• It is possible for water droplets to be dispersed and if it is possible over a wide area

There are 2 ways to test for Legionella, either you can order kits online to collect your water and send it back in the post for testing or you can get people round to test your water systems for you. There is not a way to ‘see’ if you have legionella yourself at home.

Legionnaires’ disease is NOT transmitted from person to person. It cannot be acquired by drinking infected water. It can only be acquired by inhaling droplets which allow the bacteria to reach the lungs directly.