A job in a house is not automatically a domestic-client project. HSE describes responsibilities for suitable appointments, information, resources, a construction phase plan and the health and safety file where required.
Identify the client role
A rental-business project can make the landlord a commercial client under CDM, even where the building is a house.
- Record who commissions and controls the work, the scope and whether more than one contractor will be involved.
- Appoint people with the skills, knowledge, experience and organisational capability appropriate to the project. Check principal designer and principal contractor appointments where required.
- Allow enough time and resources for safe planning and work. A low quote does not remove the client's duties.
Give contractors useful information
Gather relevant property information before work starts.
- Provide surveys, asbestos information, services, known structural issues and details of occupied areas or vulnerable occupants where relevant.
- Make sure the required construction phase plan and welfare arrangements are in place. Check notification requirements for larger projects.
- Agree how residents, visitors and contractors will be separated from hazards, and how emergency access and services will be maintained.
Review changes and handover
Client oversight is about maintaining suitable arrangements, not personally directing specialist work without competence.
- Review material changes in scope or contractors and confirm responsibilities remain clear.
- Ask for the appropriate health and safety file and completion information where required. Keep it available for future work.
- Record unresolved defects and restrictions at handover, with owners and dates. Do not let occupants use an unsafe or incomplete area.
Example: three trades work on an occupied house
A fictional refurbishment uses a builder, electrician and plumber. Identify the CDM roles and coordination before work, including how the tenant can safely use the remaining home. Separate invoices do not mean each trade can plan in isolation.
What to do
- Confirm the client role and appoint competent designers and contractors.
- Provide relevant building, asbestos and access information.
- Check planning of safety before work starts and retain handover information.
Evidence to keep
- Appointments and pre-construction information
- Construction phase plan and relevant safety file
Sources and guidance
- Commercial clients: construction responsibilitiesHealth and Safety Executive · checked 20 October 2026
Related guides
- Check asbestos before disturbing building materials
- Check Welsh building approval before conversions
- Separate Welsh fire design from building safety duties
- Get the right building control approval in England
- Identify the higher-risk building route in England
- Check the Scottish warrant and completion process