8.01-226.12 - Duty of landlord and managing agent with respect to visible mold.
§ 8.01-226.12. Duty of landlord and managing agent with respect to visiblemold.
A. As used in this section, the following definitions apply:
"Authorized occupant" means a person entitled to occupy a dwelling unitwith the consent of the landlord, but who has not signed the rental agreementand therefore does not have the rights and obligations as a tenant under therental agreement.
"Dwelling unit" means a structure or part of a structure that is used as ahome or residence by one or more persons who maintain a household, whethersingle family or multifamily, including, but not limited to, a manufacturedhome.
"Guest or invitee" means a person, other than the tenant or personauthorized by the landlord to occupy the dwelling unit, who has thepermission of the tenant to visit but not to occupy the premises.
"Interior of the dwelling unit" means the inside of the dwelling unit,consisting of interior walls, floor, and ceiling that enclose the dwellingunit as conditioned space from the outside air.
"Landlord" means the owner or lessor of the dwelling unit or the buildingof which such residential dwelling unit is a part. "Landlord" also includesa managing agent of the premises who fails to disclose the name of suchowner, lessor, or sublessor. Such managing agent shall be subject to theprovisions of § 16.1-88.03.
"Managing agent" means a person authorized by the landlord to act on behalfof the landlord under an agreement.
"Mold remediation in accordance with professional standards" means moldremediation of that portion of the dwelling unit or premises affected bymold, or any personal property of the tenant affected by mold, performedconsistent with guidance documents published by the United StatesEnvironmental Protection Agency, the United States Department of Housing andUrban Development, the American Conference of Governmental IndustrialHygienists (the Bioaerosols Manual), Standard Reference Guides of theInstitute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration for Water DamageRestoration and Professional Mold Remediation, or any protocol for moldremediation prepared by an industrial hygienist consistent with said guidancedocuments.
"Notice" means notice given in writing by either regular mail or handdelivery, with sender retaining sufficient proof of having given such notice,which may be either a United States postal certificate of mailing or acertificate of service confirming such mailing prepared by the sender.However, a person shall be deemed to have notice of a fact if he has actualknowledge of it, or he received a verbal notice of it. A person "notifies"or "gives" a notice or notification to another by taking steps reasonablycalculated to inform another person whether or not the other person actuallycomes to know of it. If a notice given is not in writing, the person givingthe notice has the burden of proof to show that the notice was given to therecipient of the notice.
"Readily accessible" means areas within the interior of the dwelling unitavailable for observation at the time of the move-in inspection that do notrequire removal of materials, personal property, equipment, or similar items.
"Tenant" means a person entitled under a rental agreement to occupy adwelling unit to the exclusion of others. Tenant shall not include (i) anauthorized occupant, (ii) a guest or invitee, or (iii) any person whoguarantees or cosigns the payment of the financial obligations of a rentalagreement but has no right to occupy a dwelling unit.
"Visible evidence of mold" means the existence of mold in the residentialdwelling unit that is visible to the naked eye of the landlord or tenant atthe time of the move-in inspection.
Any term not expressly defined herein shall have the same meaning as thosedefined in § 55-248.4.
B. Neither the landlord nor the managing agent shall be liable for civildamages in any personal injury or wrongful death action brought by a tenant,authorized occupant, or guest or invitee for exposure to mold arising fromthe condition within the interior of a dwelling unit, or for any propertydamage claims arising out of the landlord-tenant relationship, if the moldcondition is caused solely by the negligence of the tenant.
C. A managing agent with no maintenance responsibilities shall not be liablefor civil damages in any personal injury or wrongful death action brought bythe tenant, authorized occupant, or guest or invitee for exposure to mold, orfor any property damage claims arising out of the residential landlord-tenantrelationship, unless the managing agent fails to disclose the existence of amold condition of which the managing agent has actual knowledge to thelandlord and any prospective or actual tenants.
D. If the written move-in inspection report authorized under Chapter 13 (§55-217 et seq.) or 13.2 (§ 55-248.2 et seq.) of Title 55 reflects that thereis no visible evidence of mold in areas readily accessible within theinterior of the dwelling unit, and the tenant does not object thereto inwriting within five days after receiving the report, there shall be arebuttable presumption that no mold existed at the time of the move-ininspection.
E. If visible evidence of mold occurs within the dwelling unit, the landlordor managing agent with the maintenance responsibilities shall, exercisingordinary care, perform mold remediation in accordance with professionalstandards.
F. The landlord or managing agent with maintenance responsibilities shallcomply with any other applicable provisions of law.
(2008, cc. 162, 341.)