Short term lets licensing

Before you apply - additional licence conditions

Additional licence conditions

Material changes

1. The licence holder shall notify The Highland Council immediately of any material change of circumstances affecting the licensed property or the licence holder (or any agent appointed by them to manage part or all of the licensed activity), including details of any criminal convictions incurred by such persons since the granting or renewal of the licence.

Reporting of certain incidents

2. The licence holder shall notify the Council, as soon as is reasonably practicable, of the details of any incident affecting, or within, the licensed property which:

has resulted in structural damage to, or structural collapse within the property, or
which has involved a gas leak, fire, or explosion necessitating the call-out of the Emergency Services.

Noise and anti-social behaviour

3. The licence holder shall take reasonable steps to manage the property in such a way as to seek to prevent and deal effectively with any noise nuisance or antisocial behaviour by guests to anyone else in the short-term let and in the locality of the short-term let.

3a. The licence holder shall take reasonable steps to:

ensure that no disturbance or nuisance arises within or from the property, for example by explaining the house rules to the guests,
deal effectively with any disturbance or nuisance arising within or from the property, as soon as reasonably practicable after the licence holder is made aware of it, and
ensure any vehicles belonging to guests are parked lawfully, for example explaining where any designated parking spaces (if applicable) are to be found and highlighting any local rules.

3b. The licence holder shall notify the Council, as soon as is reasonably practicable, of the details of any incident of anti-social behaviour affecting or emanating from the property which has required police involvement.

Privacy and security

4. The licence holder shall take reasonable steps to manage the property in such a way as to respect and protect the privacy and security of neighbours.

4a. The licence holder shall take reasonable steps to ensure:

guests know and understand any particular rules applying to any shared areas and entrances,
guests understand that shared doors should be properly and securely closed after use, and
the provision of access codes or keys to guests cannot be used by guests to gain access to shared areas after they have finally departed.

Littering and waste disposal

5. The licence holder shall take reasonable steps to ensure that adequate facilities, to the satisfaction of the Council, are provided for the storage, recycling and disposal of all waste and shall ensure that all common areas of the property and all common external areas within the curtilage of the property are kept in a clean, tidy, and well-maintained condition to the satisfaction of the Council.

5a. The licence holder shall be responsible for advising residents of the refuse collection day and for planning for the presentation of wheeled bins for collection at the appropriate time and day (if applicable).

5b. The licence holder shall take reasonable steps to:

clearly label bins as belonging to the property,
ensure guests are made aware of how to correctly use the bins provided for the property (if applicable),
ensure bins/sacks are available (if applicable),
ensure that guests manage their waste properly, including when they depart (if applicable), and
ensure guests are made aware as to what items should not be disposed of by flushing down the toilet.

Preventing damage to property

6. The licence holder shall not affix a key box, or other device to facilitate guest entry to the property, to any public or jointly owned private infrastructure without prior consent of the relevant authority or owner(s). The licence holder must be able to produce evidence of permission to the licensing authority on request.

Maintenance of property

7. Where there is a hot tub provided at the property for use by guests, the holder of the licence shall take reasonable steps to ensure:

that it is suitably located and maintained so as to ensure it can be safely operated and used by guests,
that suitable and sufficient cleaning and disinfection procedures are in place,
that guests are provided with clear instructions on its safe use and any restrictions on its use, and
that it is kept securely covered when not in use.

Requirement to produce any policy, certificate or other document on demand

8. The licence holder shall be required to produce, as soon as is reasonably practicable, to any authorised person any policy, certificate, document, record, certificate of inspection or safety, licence or plan required by or issued in terms pursuant to any condition of this licence.

Following on from investigations of concern regarding noise

These conditions are published in accordance with Scottish Government guidance that any proposed additional conditions should be publicised. These are not applied to all licences. These will only be recommended to Committee following specific case investigations by the Council’s Environmental Health team and if the use of the condition is deemed appropriate and proportionate for the specific case by enforcement officers following the Enforcement Policy for Environmental Health.

Noise

1. The licence holder must take reasonable steps to ensure that the bedrooms, living room and hallway in the property have a suitable floor covering in order to minimise impact and airborne noise affecting any properties below. For example, carpet or vinyl floor covering with quality underlay.
(Condition may be applied following investigation of concerns regarding noise and would be applied to properties located at first floor and/or above where a residential property is located below.)

2. The licence holder must take reasonable steps to ensure that noise monitoring equipment [of type x]* is maintained in full working order [in location y]* and that the maximum reading does not exceed:
(Condition may be applied following investigations of concerns regarding noise.)

[x]* decibels between 7am and 11pm, or
[x]* decibels between 11pm and 7am.

*These values will be determined on a case by case basis.

3. The licence holder must take reasonable steps to ensure that guests do not first arrive or finally depart from the property between the hours of 11pm to 7am. The licence holder must advise guests of this as part of their booking terms and conditions. "Reasonable steps" allows for exceptions, such as significantly delayed transport.
(Condition would only be applied following investigations of concerns regarding noise where a property is located at first floor and/or above where a residential property is located below, near a neighbouring property or whether there is a shared entrance/communal areas.)

4. The licence holder must take reasonable steps to ensure that guests do not use the hot tub after 10pm.
(Condition may be applied following investigation of concerns regarding noise associated with hot tubs and where a hot tub is positioned in close proximity or overlooked by neighbouring property.)

5. The licence holder must take reasonable step to ensure that guests do not play amplified music within the garden or external areas after 11pm, where it would impact neighbouring residents.
(Condition may be applied following investigation of concerns regarding noise associated with playing music in outdoor areas.)