Rome Court rules on landlord responsibility for appliance replacement

A ruling by the Court of Rome (Tribunale di Roma) has established that landlords are responsible for replacing essential appliances, such as water heaters, when they fail due to age rather than tenant misuse.

In a specific case involving intermittent hot water, the court ordered a 10% reduction in rent for the period the malfunction occurred. The decision followed a technical assessment which confirmed the appliance's obsolescence and the absence of required maintenance documentation. The court rejected the landlord's defense that the issues resulted from a lack of routine maintenance by the tenant, noting that the tenant had not been provided with the necessary maintenance logs.