Planned preventative maintenance is a proactive approach to maintaining properties, assets, facilities or equipment. By carefully planning and carrying out maintenance tasks and checks at set periods of time, the life of the property is extended, reducing the amount of repairs needed, and, in the case of assets, reducing downtime, keeping tenants safe and happy.
Landlords and letting agents are subject to many regulations to ensure the properties they look after stay safe for tenants. With so many responsibilities on your plate, it can be easy to miss one of the many statutory safety checks that are required by law. Not only can this result in fines or criminal prosecutions, but missing certain aspects of compliance can prevent property repossessions or the ability to let to new tenants. There’s another side to PPM, too. Not all PPM is about compliance. Regular maintenance of properties—including checks, minor component replacements, and non-urgent repairs when needed—can prevent larger problems from occurring that could require more costly fixes, or even render the property unusable. A properly implemented and managed PPM schedule will protect the underlying value of your building, reduce unnecessary expenses and cut reactive maintenance costs.
Having all your maintenance tasks planned and scheduled months ahead of when they’re due is a great idea, but practically it’s not always possible. Arranging PPM can require multiple stakeholders - the agent, the landlord, the tenant, and the contractor - all of which have to be in sync. The first step is ensuring the landlord is willing to fund the works. For compliance-related PPM, this is simple—things like gas safety certificates are the law. But for PPM intended to extend the life of the property or its assets, this may be more difficult, and you may have to make the case for why it is better to do minor maintenance to prevent larger problems from occurring. The next challenge can be tricky: getting hold of a contractor. Britain is facing a contractor shortage driven by factors such as an ageing workforce, Brexit, and the cost-of-living crisis. Over 937,000 new workers will be needed over the next ten years to meet demand. This solidifies the importance of booking tradespeople far in advance and building strong relationships with contractors you can trust.
