PHOENIX – As temperatures rise to triple digits, Attorney General Kris Mayes is warning landlords about their obligations under Arizona law as well as advising tenants on the rights they have if their air conditioning (AC) needs repair or otherwise fails to provide a habitable living environment.
“Extreme heat poses a serious health risk, and it’s unacceptable for tenants to be without proper air conditioning during summer months,” said Attorney General Mayes. “In the case of an outage, landlords and management companies must take swift action to ensure residents have safe and habitable living conditions in accordance with the law. Landlords should be on notice that I will not hesitate to enforce these critical protections for Arizonans because adequate air conditioning is a matter of life and death in Arizona’s summer heat.”
Tenants have rights that are protected by Arizona law. Failure to provide adequate air conditioning potentially violates the Arizona Landlord Tenant Act (A.R.S. § 33-1301-1381) and any applicable local regulations.
Under Arizona law, landlords must provide a rental unit that has fully operating cooling systems and other appliances that make it safe to occupy. Some municipalities also have more specific standards that may apply.
For example, in the cities of Phoenix and Tucson, rental units that use air conditioning cannot exceed a maximum temperature of 82 degrees in all habitable rooms, including bathrooms. This includes chiller systems which are air conditioning systems and subject to this requirement. Evaporative coolers are allowed a slightly higher maximum temperature (86 degrees).
It is also important to note that even if renters are not up to date on their rent, landlords are not allowed to cut off air conditioning or other utilities to “punish” tenants (A.R.S. § 33-1374).
Landlords and management agents also have obligations as housing providers under the Arizona Civil Rights Act. Arizona Fair Housing Laws guarantee Arizona citizens equal conditions and access to services, such as functioning cooling systems, while renting.
As such, any remedial measures or repairs cannot be provided to residents on a discriminatory basis. Housing providers must also make reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities. Failing to provide an accommodation to an individual whose disability is impacted or exacerbated by heat related conditions can potentially be a violation of the Fair Housing Laws.
This may include individuals who are at 60 years old and above, as older individuals have greater difficulty regulating core body temperatures and are more susceptible to heat, especially in temperatures exceeding 85 degrees.
AG Mayes offers the following tips to consumers whose AC has gone out:
- If your rental unit has a broken AC, it is important to take steps to ensure your safety. Before you do anything else, notify your landlord. Start with a phone call and then follow up in writing, preferably hand delivered or by certified mail. If you have a medical condition that will be exacerbated by extreme heat, please include this information in your notification, and request accommodations as necessary.
- Your landlord must fix your broken AC within five days of written notice, if temperatures exceed 100 degrees. This timeframe may be shorter if the temperature inside the unit is higher than what is allowed by individual city code. The notice in writing starts the clock. They have up to five days to fix the issue, which may mean providing a new air conditioning unit, calling in a repair team, or otherwise bringing your indoor temperature down to legally acceptable limits.
- If temperatures are below 100 degrees, the landlord has ten days to repair a broken AC unless the temperature inside the unit exceeds what is allowed by individual city code or the temperature inside the unit poses a threat to health or safety.
- For landlords who fail to repair the broken AC, renters may be able to make use of the self-help repair statute. Arizona law allows you to notify your landlord that you will be fixing an issue yourself and deducting the cost from your rent if they have failed to fix your AC after five to ten days, if you meet the specifications.
- If your landlord does not fix your broken AC within five to ten days, Arizona tenant rights with air conditioning may allow you to terminate your lease or sue for damages (such as for medical bills or paid rent).
If your landlord continues to fail to repair the broken AC, you may file a Consumer Complaint with the Arizona Attorney General’s Office. If you need a complaint form sent to you, you can contact the Attorney General’s Office in Phoenix at (602) 542-5763, in Tucson at (520) 628-6648, or outside the Phoenix and Tucson metro areas at (800) 352-8431.