Yes. In California, landlords have to provide window screens and keep them in working order on every openable window in habitable rooms and bathrooms. The rule sits in Title 25 of the California Code of Regulations, Section 728, which requires that openable windows in rooms used for living, dining, cooking, sleeping, bathing, and toilet facilities “shall be properly maintained with insect screening.”1Legal Information Institute. California Code of Regulations Title 25, Section 728 – Insect Screening Many tenants go hunting for the requirement in Civil Code Section 1941.1, the general habitability statute, and come up empty — the Civil Code doesn’t name screens. The real authority is in the state’s housing regulations, and knowing where it lives makes it easier to push back when a landlord claims the duty doesn’t exist.
Where the Screen Rule Comes From
Title 25, Section 728 is the direct source. It applies to every residential rental in California and treats screens as a mandatory maintenance item, not a courtesy. The same regulation extends to exterior doors in those rooms, requiring either screen doors or solid doors with working self-closing devices.1Legal Information Institute. California Code of Regulations Title 25, Section 728 – Insect Screening
Civil Code Section 1941.1 defines when a dwelling is “untenantable.” It lists waterproofing, plumbing, heating, and “unbroken windows and doors,” but it does not call out screens by name.2California Legislative Information. California Civil Code Section 1941.1 It does, however, incorporate the substandard-building definitions in Health and Safety Code Section 17920.3, which cover inadequate sanitation and the harboring of insects.3California Legislative Information. California Health and Safety Code Section 17920.3 A unit with missing screens that lets insects in can run afoul of Title 25 directly and the habitability statute through that back door.
Who Pays When a Screen Gets Damaged
Landlords have to provide screens that are intact and properly fitted when you move in, and they stay responsible for damage caused by normal aging: mesh that goes brittle in the sun, frames that warp, hardware that corrodes.
Tenants have their own duties under Civil Code Section 1941.2, including keeping the unit sanitary, using fixtures properly, and not willfully damaging anything. If a pet shreds the mesh or someone pops a frame out of its track, that repair falls on the tenant. Most arguments happen at the line between wear and damage, and most of them get decided by paperwork. Photograph every screen during your move-in walkthrough, note any tears, bent frames, or missing screens on the checklist, and keep the dated record. That file is what protects your deposit later.
How to Request a Screen Repair
Put the request in writing. Name the window, describe what’s wrong, date the letter, and keep a copy. The California Department of Real Estate recommends sending repair notices by certified mail with return receipt, or delivering them in person and getting a dated receipt.4Department of Real Estate. Landlords’ and Tenants’ Rights Guide – Dealing With Problems
California law presumes 30 days is a reasonable period for a non-emergency repair.4Department of Real Estate. Landlords’ and Tenants’ Rights Guide – Dealing With Problems For a window screen, 30 days is more than enough. Photograph the damaged or missing screen when you send the notice. Photograph it again on day 31 if nothing has changed.
If Your Landlord Ignores You
Repair and Deduct
Once a reasonable time has passed with no response, Civil Code Section 1942 lets you fix the problem yourself and subtract the cost from your next rent payment.5California Legislative Information. California Civil Code Section 1942 The limits:
- The repair cost cannot exceed one month’s rent.
- You can only use this remedy twice in any 12-month period.
- You cannot use it if you or your household caused the damage.
- You must have given notice first and allowed a reasonable time for the landlord to act.
Replacing a screen almost always falls well under a month’s rent, which makes this the practical path for most tenants. Save the receipt, attach a copy to your rent payment, and deduct the amount. Withholding rent entirely is a different remedy with real eviction risk; the state Department of Justice warns tenants to get legal help before trying it.6California Department of Justice. Know Your Rights – Habitability For a missing screen, repair and deduct is the smarter move.
Code Enforcement
You can also file a complaint with your local code enforcement or building inspection office. Under Civil Code Section 1942.4, once a public enforcement officer has officially notified the landlord of substandard conditions, the landlord cannot demand or collect rent, or serve a pay-or-quit notice, until the conditions are fixed.7California Legislative Information. California Civil Code Section 1942.4 Enforcement intensity varies by city; your local Department of Building and Safety or housing inspection office is the place to start.
You Cannot Be Punished for Asking
Civil Code Section 1942.5 blocks retaliation for 180 days after you send a repair notice, file a complaint with a government agency, or an inspection produces a citation. During that period the landlord cannot evict you, raise your rent, or cut services in response. If the landlord retaliates anyway, you can sue for actual damages plus punitive damages of $100 to $2,000 per act where the landlord acted with fraud, oppression, or malice.8California Legislative Information. California Civil Code Section 1942.5 Any lease clause purporting to waive these protections is void.
What Screens Don’t Cover
Two separate rules sit next to the insect-screen requirement and get mixed up with it.
The first is emergency escape. Screens, bars, or grilles on bedroom escape windows have to release from the inside without a key, tool, or special knowledge, and the force to open them cannot exceed what’s needed for normal window operation. A screen painted shut or screwed into the frame is a life-safety violation, not just an annoyance. If your landlord installs security screens or bars, confirm they have working release hardware you can operate empty-handed.
The second is child fall protection. A standard insect screen is not designed to keep a child from falling out of a window. The Consumer Product Safety Commission is blunt: “Never depend on screens to keep children from falling out of windows.”9CPSC.gov. Publication 5124 – Preventing Window Falls Window guards and window-opening control devices meeting ASTM F2090 are the actual fall-prevention hardware, and they’re separate from screens. Some California cities require landlords to install guards or opening limiters on request, especially in multi-story buildings; your local building department can tell you whether yours is one of them.
Lease Language Cannot Waive These Rights
A lease clause saying you accept the unit “as-is” or waive the right to habitable conditions is unenforceable in California. The implied warranty of habitability exists by law, and courts have refused to let landlords contract their way out of it.10Loyola University Chicago Law Journal. Non-Waiver of the Implied Warranty of Habitability in Residential Leases The anti-retaliation protection in Section 1942.5 is likewise non-waivable, with any such provision void as against public policy.8California Legislative Information. California Civil Code Section 1942.5 If a landlord points to the lease as a reason not to repair or install screens, the law is on your side. The duty to maintain screens under Title 25 belongs to the property owner for the full length of the tenancy, no matter what either of you signed.