What a tenant can do about a defect in a rented home, by country
None of the ingested tenancy statutes mentions mould or damp by name, so this table shows the general defect rules that apply to a home that cannot be used properly. Germany, Austria, Norway and the Netherlands let the tenant pay less rent while the defect lasts; Spain, Norway, the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden let the tenant repair and claim the cost back, while in Ontario only the Landlord and Tenant Board can order a rent abatement or repair costs. Germany and Austria add an exit for a home that endangers health, and in both the right survives a contract waiver or the tenant knowing the condition at signing.
Scope of this guide
Canada: the Canada Labour Code (federal sector) and the Ontario statutes that LawAsked has loaded. Other provinces are not compared.
| Country | Rent reduced or withheld | Tenant repairs and recovers cost | Tenant can end the tenancy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austria | Free of rent for the period and to the extent the home is unusable | Withdraw without notice if the home is handed over or becomes unfit for the agreed use; for a health-damaging home the right survives a waiver or knowing the condition at signing | |
| Canada | Only by order: the Board may order an abatement of rent | Only by order: the Board may authorize a repair already made or planned and order the landlord to pay its cost | Only by order: the Board may terminate the tenancy |
| Germany | No rent while fitness for use is removed; reduced rent while it is reduced (a trivial reduction is ignored) | Yes if the landlord is in default, or if immediate repair is needed to preserve the property; necessary expenses are reimbursed | Immediate termination if the home is so bad that using it seriously endangers health, even if the tenant knew or waived rights at signing |
| Spain | Yes: urgent repairs at once; other repairs after the landlord ignores a written request with a budget for 15 days, with the cost deducted from future rent | Yes if the landlord does not make the repairs the statute requires of the landlord | |
| Netherlands | Proportionate reduction of rent from the day the landlord was properly told, until the defect is fixed | Yes if the landlord is in default: reasonable costs recoverable, if wished by deduction from the rent | Either party may dissolve the lease if a defect the landlord need not fix makes the expected use wholly impossible |
| Norway | Rent reduction in proportion to the loss of value while the defect lasts, or withhold enough rent to secure the tenant’s claims | Yes if the landlord does not meet the duty to correct: justified costs recoverable | Yes if the defect amounts to a material breach |
| Sweden | Fair rent reduction for the time the flat is in a defective state | Yes: the tenant may fix the defect at the landlord’s cost if the landlord does not act after being told | Yes, but only if the defect is of material importance and the landlord has not fixed it |
Country by country
Austria
- Rule
- ABGB §§ 1096(1), 1117
- Rent exemption under § 1096 cannot be waived in advance for immovable property.
- The rent exemption applies where the home becomes defective without the tenant’s fault. The ingested sections do not give a repair-and-deduct right, so that column is empty.
so ist der Bestandnehmer für die Dauer und in dem Maße der Unbrauchbarkeit von der Entrichtung des Zinses befreitAuf diese Befreiung kann bei der Miete unbeweglicher Sachen im voraus nicht verzichtet werden. Der Bestandnehmer ist berechtigt, auch vor Verlauf der bedungenen Zeit von dem Vertrag ohne Kündigung abzustehen, wenn das Bestandstück in einem Zustand übergeben oder ohne seine Schuld in einen Zustand geraten ist, der es zu dem bedungenen Gebrauch untauglich machtAus dem Grunde der Gesundheitsschädlichkeit gemieteter Wohnräume steht dieses Recht dem Mieter auch dann zu, wenn er im Vertrage darauf verzichtet oder die Beschaffenheit der Räume beim Vertragsabschluß gekannt hat. Canada
- Rule
- Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (Ontario) ss. 29(1), 30(1)
- Ontario residential tenancies only. The tenant applies to the Board; the statute here gives no right to withhold rent or repair and deduct on the tenant’s own decision.
- The Board may also order the landlord to do specified repairs within a set time.
An order determining that the landlord has breached an obligation under subsection 20 (1) or section 161. the Board may do one or more of the following: 1. Terminate the tenancy. 2. Order an abatement of rent.Authorize a repair or replacement that has been or is to be made, or work that has been or is to be done, and order its cost to be paid by the landlord to the tenant. Germany
- Rule
- BGB §§ 536(1) and (4), 536a(2), 569(1)
- A term for housing that is worse for the tenant than § 536 is ineffective.
- The tenant must report the defect to the landlord without delay (§ 536c), or loses rent reduction for the time the landlord could not act.
so ist der Mieter für die Zeit, in der die Tauglichkeit aufgehoben ist, von der Entrichtung der Miete befreit. Für die Zeit, während der die Tauglichkeit gemindert ist, hat er nur eine angemessen herabgesetzte Miete zu entrichten.Bei einem Mietverhältnis über Wohnraum ist eine zum Nachteil des Mieters abweichende Vereinbarung unwirksam. Der Mieter kann den Mangel selbst beseitigen und Ersatz der erforderlichen Aufwendungen verlangen, wenn 1. der Vermieter mit der Beseitigung des Mangels in Verzug ist oder 2. die umgehende Beseitigung des Mangels zur Erhaltung oder Wiederherstellung des Bestands der Mietsache notwendig ist. wenn der gemietete Wohnraum so beschaffen ist, dass seine Benutzung mit einer erheblichen Gefährdung der Gesundheit verbunden ist. Spain
- Rule
- Ley de Arrendamientos Urbanos, arts. 21(3) and (5), 27(3)
- The deduction must be a reasonable cost, proved in writing, for damage affecting habitability and health.
- No general right to reduce rent for a defect appears in the ingested text; rent stops only while repair works make the home uninhabitable (art. 26), which is a separate situation.
podrá realizar las que sean urgentes para evitar un daño inminente o una incomodidad grave, y exigir de inmediato su importe al arrendador.Transcurrido dicho plazo sin respuesta o en caso de negativa injustificada, el arrendatario podrá ejecutar las obras necesarias y descontar su importe de las rentas futuras. el arrendatario podrá resolver el contrato por las siguientes causas: a) La no realización por el arrendador de las reparaciones a que se refiere el artículo 21. Netherlands
- Rule
- Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, art. 206(3), 207(1), 210(1)
- No rent reduction for defects the tenant must fix as small repairs or is liable for.
- The ending right in art. 210 is for a defect the landlord is not obliged to fix; it does not cover a defect the landlord should have fixed.
Is de verhuurder met het verhelpen in verzuim, dan kan de huurder dit verhelpen zelf verrichten en de daarvoor gemaakte kosten, voor zover deze redelijk waren, op de verhuurder verhalen, desgewenst door deze in mindering van de huurprijs te brengen. De huurder kan in geval van vermindering van huurgenot ten gevolge van een gebrek een daaraan evenredige vermindering van de huurprijs vorderen Indien een gebrek dat de verhuurder ingevolge artikel 206 niet verplicht is te verhelpen, het genot dat de huurder mocht verwachten, geheel onmogelijk maakt, is zowel de huurder als de verhuurder bevoegd de huur op de voet van artikel 267 van Boek 6 te ontbinden. Norway
- Rule
- Husleieloven §§ 2-10, 2-11, 2-12, 2-15
- The rent reduction does not run after the tenant refuses an offer of correction the tenant was bound to accept.
- The tenant cannot cancel for a defect that has been corrected under § 2-10.
Oppfyller ikke utleieren sin plikt til å rette mangelen, kan leieren kreve erstattet sine forsvarlige utgifter ved å få mangelen rettet. I den tid husrommet lider av en mangel, kan leieren kreve avslag i leien Leieren kan heve leieavtalen dersom forsinkelsen eller mangelen medfører vesentlig mislighold. Leieren kan holde tilbake så mye av leien at det sikrer de kravene leieren har mot utleieren som følge av mangel eller forsinkelse. Sweden
- Rule
- Jordabalk 12 kap. 11 § and 16 §
- Section 16 extends these remedies to damage during the tenancy that the tenant is not responsible for; a person should confirm how far 11 § applies to a defect arising mid-tenancy.
- For a flat let as a home the Rent Tribunal may order the landlord to fix the defect (a remedial order), which may carry a fine.
Hyresgästen får avhjälpa bristen på hyresvärdens bekostnad, om hyresvärden underlåter att efter tillsägelse ombesörja åtgärden så snart det kan ske.får hyresgästen säga upp avtalet. Uppsägning får dock ske endast om bristen är av väsentlig betydelse.För den tid lägenheten är i bristfälligt skick har hyresgästen rätt till skälig nedsättning av hyran. Bestämmelserna i 10-12 §§ tillämpas också, om 1. lägenheten blir så förstörd under hyrestiden att den inte kan användas för det avsedda ändamålet eller om lägenheten annars skadas under hyrestiden utan att hyresgästen är ansvarig för skadan Countries not in this table yet
Japan and the United Kingdom are not shown: the ingested Shakuchi-Shakuya-ho and Housing Act 2004 give no tenant remedy for a defective home (the Housing Act 2004 empowers the local authority, not the tenant, and does not mention damp or mould). Mould and damp are not named in any ingested tenancy statute.
How this table was built
Every row is taken from the official, consolidated text of the statute, which LawAsked loads from each government’s legislation service.
Each figure is tied to a passage quoted word for word from that text. When the page is served, it checks that every quoted passage is still in the current text of a law that is in force; if a law is amended and its wording changes, that row is hidden until a person reviews it again.
The table shows the statutory minimum only. Collective agreements, awards and individual contracts often give more than the statute, and some countries let a collective agreement set different terms.
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LawAsked, “What a tenant can do about a defect in a rented home, by country”, https://lawasked.com/guides/defects-tenant-remedies (reviewed October 25, 2026).
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