Lodgings in another person's house constitute the relation of landlord and tenant. It is not necessary that the contract should be in writing, though it is highly expedient. In England, unless there has been part performance, a verbal contract to let lodgings cannot be enforced, since it is an agreement relating to land, and so void by the Statute of Frauds. But where a furnished house is let, and a written agreement or lease is used, it is absolutely necessary that there should be a stamp on such writing, which, if adhesive, must be cancelled by the parties under a penalty of £10. One of the risks which the lodger in England ran was that if his landlord, L, were himself a tenant to A, then, if L's rent were in arrear, the lodger's goods might be taken by A to pay this, for the rule was that all goods found on the premises (with certain definite exceptions, of which this was not one) could be taken under a distress for rent; but by the 34 and 35 Vict. chap. 79, 1871, it was provided that, if the lodger has paid the mesne (or intermediate) landlord, the superior landlord must leave his goods alone; if he has not paid the mesne landlord, then he may pay the superior landlord in lieu of the mesne landlord, and again obtain protection for his goods. The statute 2 and 3 Vict. chap. 71, sect. 38, provides that a police-magistrate may award compensation up to £15 for wilful damage done by lodgers. The Larceny Act, 1861, makes the stealing of chattels or fixtures by lodgers a felony punishable by imprisonment for two years or penal servitude for seven years, according to the value of the thing stolen.
A lodger is entitled to the use of the door-bell and knocker, and the landlord impliedly promises that the rooms are fit for occupation. In letting an unfurnished house there is no such implication. A lodging-house keeper, even where he keeps a boarding-house, which nearly resembles an Inn (q.v.), is not liable for the safe custody of the lodger's goods. He is merely liable for ordinary care; but he does not warrant at all hazards that the goods will not be stolen. Even if the lodger's goods are stolen by a servant of the house, the lodging-house keeper is not liable. The notice to quit depends on how the lodgings were taken. If they were taken by the week, a week's notice is sufficient; if by the month, a month's; and if by the quarter, a quarter's notice, unless some other agreement was made. Hence, if the lodger quits without notice, he is liable for one week's, or month's, &c. rent, even though the landlord put a notice in the window. The lodging-house keeper may distract the lodger's goods for unpaid rent. When a lodger refuses to quit the lodgings after a notice has expired he cannot be put out by force, but in many cases a summary remedy is given for recovering possession. Since 1868 a lodger is entitled to vote for members of parliament in boroughs, if he pays rent of the clear annual value of £10, provided also that he has resided twelve months in the district, and put in his claim to be registered. The lodger-franchise was extended to counties by the Representation of the People Act of 1884. In Scotland the lodger's goods cannot be taken by the landlord of the lodging-house keeper for rent, nor is it yet decided whether the householder's liability in case of loss of the lodger's goods is equal to or less than that of an innkeeper.
Common Lodging-houses, where poor people lodge by the night, are subject to police supervision. The Public Health Act, 1875, provides (in continuation of earlier statutes) for their registration and inspection, and enacts that they are only to be kept by registered keepers. Before being licensed they are inspected by the medical officer of health, every room being measured and restricted to a specified number of lodgers. Every room has this number painted on the door, and a copy of the police regulations is posted up in a conspicuous part of it. The keepers are bound to thoroughly cleanse all the rooms, stairs, &c., as often as by-laws shall direct, and to keep a proper supply of water. If fever break out notice must be given to the local authority. These duties are enforced by means of penalties. The same act directs that, if any person suffering from any dangerous infections disorder has lodged in any rooms, such rooms must be disinfected to the satisfaction of a legally qualified medical practitioner, as testified by a certificate signed by him, before they are again let. Similar provisions are in force in Scotland and Ireland. Of recent years very great improvements have been effected in common lodging-houses. In most large towns in Great Britain 'model lodging-houses' have been erected on approved plans, wherein greater privacy is ensured in the sleeping quarters, and a complete system of ventilation secured. The latest inventions in cooking apparatus, washing-houses, &c. have been introduced; while reading, recreation, and bath rooms form indispensable parts of these establishments. See VAGRANTS.