Food, Drink & Hospitality Property letting

Holiday let food hygiene, employment and insurance

Food hygiene, employment law, insurance, and environmental duties for self-catering holiday accommodation. Covers food business registration, allergens, food hygiene ratings by nation, right to work checks, tips allocation, employer liability, and guest protection obligations.

UK-wide Updated 11 Jun 2026

Guide summary

If you provide food to guests, register your holiday let as a food business with your local authority. Check employees' right to work in the UK before they start. Tell guests about allergens in any food you offer.

Register your food business with your local authority at least 28 days before trading
Tell guests about 14 specific allergens in any food you provide
Check every employee's right to work in the UK before they start
Use the Home Office online checking service for right to work checks
Penalty up to £60,000 for hiring illegal workers
Fairly distribute any staff tips from October 2024
Get employer liability insurance if you have staff
Food hygiene ratings range from 0 to 5 stars

On this page

UK-wide

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Food hygiene (if you provide food)

If you offer breakfast, cream teas, or any food to guests, you're running a food business. You must register with your local authority and follow food safety rules.

Food Business Registration

Free mandatory registration with local authority environmental health required at least 28 days before opening any food business.

All food businesses in the UK must register with their local authority's environmental health department at least 28 days before starting to trade. Registration is free and is a legal requirement under food safety law. This applies whether you operate from commercial premises, home, a market stall, or as a mobile caterer.

Registration cost: FREE
Registration deadline: At least 28 days before trading
Registration validity: Permanent (notify of changes)
Processing time: Immediate confirmation, inspection scheduled later
Home-based businesses: Must register (same as commercial premises)
Mobile food businesses: Register once, with the local authority where the vehicle or equipment is normally kept
Food hygiene rating: Issued after first inspection (rating of 0 to 5)

Who needs to register

Commercial premises: Restaurants, cafés, pubs, hotels, takeaways, shops, bakeries, manufacturers
Home-based: Home baking businesses, childminders providing food, food sold online from home
Mobile: Food trucks, market stalls, mobile caterers, ice cream vans
Temporary: Pop-ups, event catering, farmers markets (register even for occasional trading)

Separate from premises licence

Food business registration is separate from premises licences for alcohol. Restaurants serving alcohol require both free food registration with environmental health AND a premises licence (£100-£1,905) from the licensing authority. Both are usually departments within the same local council.

Allergen information

You must inform guests about allergens in any food you provide. This applies even if you just leave a welcome hamper.

Employing staff

If you employ cleaners, gardeners, maintenance workers, or anyone else, you have legal obligations as an employer.

Right to work checks

Check every employee's right to work in the UK before they start. This applies to all nationalities, including British citizens and EU nationals who settled after Brexit.

Acceptable right to work documents

Complete List A and List B documents for right to work checks (2026/27).

For a manual check, employers must check a document or specified combination of documents from List A (proves an ongoing right to work) OR a document or combination from List B (proves a time-limited right to work, requiring follow-up checks). List B is divided into Group 1 (documents showing the holder's own time-limited permission) and Group 2 (documents giving a 6-month statutory excuse, such as an Employer Checking Service verification notice). There is no rule requiring two List B documents.

List A - Ongoing right to work (British/Irish citizens, settled status)

UK passport (current or expired): British citizen passport
Irish passport (current or expired): Irish citizen passport or passport card
Certificate of registration/naturalisation: British citizenship certificate with unrestricted right to work (in combination with an official document giving the National Insurance number)
Birth/adoption certificate + NI number: UK birth or adoption certificate issued in UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Ireland PLUS official document with National Insurance number
Frontier Worker permit: Irish or EEA/Swiss citizens working in UK but living elsewhere
Immigration status document: Endorsement of indefinite leave to enter/remain (in combination with an official document giving the National Insurance number)

List B - Time-limited right to work (requires follow-up checks)

Passport with visa/stamp (Group 1): Current passport with UK visa endorsement showing the holder's time-limited permission
Immigration status document with expiry (Group 1): Limited leave to enter/remain with expiry date (in combination with an official document giving the National Insurance number)
Certificate of Application (Group 2): Outstanding application or appeal with Home Office. Digital CoAs (issued on/after 1 July 2021) no longer require Employer Checking Service verification. Non-digital CoAs require a Positive Verification Notice from the Employer Checking Service
Positive Verification Notice (Group 2): Issued by the Employer Checking Service - gives a 6-month statutory excuse

Defunct documents

All Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) and Biometric Residence Cards (BRCs) expired on 31 December 2024 and cannot be accepted for right to work checks. Their holders have been moved to eVisas - they must create a UKVI account and provide a share code for the online checking service.

Online Right to Work Checks (Share Code)

For most modern visas, the online checking service can be used where the employee generates a share code. This is now the primary method for:

eVisas (digital immigration status)
EU Settlement Scheme (settled or pre-settled status)
Most visa holders from 2024 onwards

Check someone's right to work online

Civil penalties for illegal working

Civil penalties for employing someone without the right to work in the UK, including penalty amounts and statutory excuses. Effective 13 February 2024.

Employers who employ someone who does not have the right to work in the UK face significant civil penalties. These penalties tripled on 13 February 2024 as part of the government's illegal migration measures.

First breach: Up to £45,000 per illegal worker (increased from £15,000)
Repeat breach: Up to £60,000 per illegal worker (increased from £20,000)
Effective date: 13 February 2024
Fast payment reduction: 30% reduction for first-time breach if paid within 21 days

How to avoid penalties

Employers can establish a statutory excuse against civil penalties by conducting right to work checks before employment begins. The excuse is maintained by conducting follow-up checks for those with time-limited permission to work.

Penalty amounts

The Home Office determines the exact penalty amount based on factors including:

Whether it is a first or repeat breach
Number of illegal workers employed
Whether the employer has a previous history of non-compliance
Cooperation with the investigation

Maximum penalties apply: £45,000 per worker for first offences, £60,000 per worker for repeat offences.

Civil penalties for employing illegal workers

Staff tips and gratuities

If guests leave tips for staff (cleaners, housekeepers), new rules from October 2024 require you to pass them on fairly.

Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023

Employers must ensure that all tips, gratuities and service charges are distributed fairly to workers without deductions (except taxes). A statutory code of practice came into force in October 2024, requiring tips to be allocated by the end of the following month.

Fair distribution of tips

Employers must ensure tips are allocated in a fair and transparent manner among workers. Tips include:

Cash tips left by customers
Card tips and service charges
Digital tips via apps or payment platforms

Key requirements

No employer deductions: Employers cannot deduct anything from tips except for tax and NI
Allocation deadline: Tips must be allocated to workers by the end of the month following receipt
Written policy: Employers must have a written policy on how tips are allocated
Record keeping: Keep records of tips received and how they were allocated for 3 years

Tronc schemes

Many hospitality businesses operate a tronc (an independent arrangement run by a troncmaster who allocates tips). Tronc schemes have tax advantages as tips paid directly to workers via tronc are not subject to employer NI.

Worker requests for information

Workers have the right to request information on how tips are allocated and the employer must respond within 28 days.

Employment tribunal claims

Workers can bring tribunal claims if employers breach the rules. Tribunals can order payment of sums due and award compensation.

Step 1: Draft a written tipping policy explaining how tips, gratuities and service charges are allocated
Step 2: Ensure tips are allocated fairly among workers (consider role, hours, seniority)
Step 3: Do not make any deductions from tips except tax and NI
Step 4: Allocate tips by the end of the month following receipt
Step 5: Keep records of all tips received and how they were distributed for 3 years
Step 6: Make tipping policy available to all workers
Step 7: Consider establishing a tronc scheme to reduce employer NI liability
Step 8: Respond to worker requests for tipping information within 28 days

Tips, gratuities and service charges

Employer health and safety duties

If you have employees, additional health and safety duties apply.

Health and safety basics

Essential health and safety requirements for employers.

Written policy (5+ employees): Required by law - must record your health and safety policy
Risk assessment: All employers must assess workplace risks and act on findings
Employers' Liability insurance: Mandatory £5 million minimum cover (£2,500/day penalty)
First aid provision: Assess needs and provide appropriate equipment and trained staff
Accident book (RIDDOR): Record injuries and report serious incidents to HSE

HSE - Getting started with health and safety

Employers' liability insurance

You must have employers' liability insurance if you have any employees.

Employers' Liability Insurance Requirements

Legally required insurance for businesses that employ staff

Legal requirement: LEGALLY REQUIRED if you employ anyone (even part-time staff)
Minimum cover: £5 million minimum (most policies provide £10 million)
Penalty for non-compliance: £2,500 fine per day without insurance, plus £1,000 fine for not displaying certificate
What it covers: Compensation claims from employees injured or made ill at work
Exemption: Unincorporated businesses employing only close family members are exempt (the exemption does not apply to limited companies)

Employers' Liability Insurance

Insurance requirements

Holiday let insurance differs from standard home insurance. Check you have appropriate cover.

Public Liability Insurance

Insurance protecting against third-party injury or property damage claims

What it covers: Third-party injury or property damage claims (customers, visitors, general public)
Typical cover: £1 million to £10 million (many clients require minimum £5 million)
When required: Often contractually required by clients, venues, or landlords before allowing you to trade
Who needs it: Almost all businesses that interact with customers or work on third-party premises
Legal status: Not legally required but often practically essential

Holiday let operators typically need:

Public liability insurance: Covers guest injury or property damage claims - typically £2-5 million minimum
Buildings insurance: Holiday let specific policy
Contents insurance: Covers damage by guests
Loss of income cover: If property is unusable
Employers’ liability: If you have staff (legally required)

Environmental duties

You must handle waste properly and may have energy efficiency obligations.

Waste duty of care

Legal duty of care obligations when producing and disposing of business waste.

All businesses that produce, import, keep, store, transport, treat, or dispose of waste have a legal duty of care to ensure waste is managed properly from creation to final disposal. This applies regardless of business size.

Legal basis: Environmental Protection Act 1990, Section 34
Applies to: All businesses and organisations that produce or handle waste
Waste transfer notes: Required for every transfer of non-hazardous waste - keep for minimum 2 years
Consignment notes: Required for hazardous waste transfers - keep for minimum 3 years
Carrier verification: Only transfer waste to registered waste carriers - check public register
Fly-tipping fixed penalty: Up to £1,000 (increased from £400 from April 2025 for England)
Fly-tipping prosecution: Unlimited fine and/or up to 5 years imprisonment
Director liability: Directors can be prosecuted personally for waste offences committed with consent or negligence

Waste duty of care code of practice

Energy performance certificate (EPC)

Most holiday lets in England do not need an EPC. One is required only if the property is let for a combined total of 4 months or more in any 12-month period under a licence to occupy and the occupier is responsible for the energy costs - most holiday-let guests are not, so most holiday lets fall outside the requirement. Where an EPC is required, the minimum energy efficiency standard (band E) applies. Government consultations on reforming EPC rules for short-term lets have not yet been implemented.

Even where not required, having an EPC can help with marketing and identifies energy savings.

Protecting guests

Guests have consumer rights when booking holiday accommodation.

Consumer Rights - Goods Quality Standards

Quality requirements for goods under Consumer Rights Act

Satisfactory quality: Standard a reasonable person would consider satisfactory
Fit for purpose: Suitable for normal purpose and any specific purpose stated
As described: Match any description, sample, or model
Appearance and finish: Included in satisfactory quality assessment
Freedom from minor defects: Included in satisfactory quality assessment
Safety: Must be safe for normal use
Durability: Last a reasonable time

Key obligations:

Describe the property accurately in listings
Provide what you've advertised (amenities, facilities)
Handle complaints fairly
Have a clear cancellation policy
Don't mislead guests about pricing or availability