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Renters with six months’ arrears to get just four weeks’ notice before eviction
Tenants who have failed to pay their rent for six months can be evicted with just four weeks’ notice under new government legislation tabled today, in an apparent watering down of promises made by ministers last week.
Regulations coming into force tomorrow dictate that a six-month notice period will be necessary for all landlords seeking possession except where rent arrears are over six months or where tenants have committed anti-social behaviour.
Announcing a four-week extension to the eviction ban last Friday, the government said it intended “to give tenants greater protection from eviction over the winter by requiring landlords to provide tenants with six months’ notice in all, bar those cases raising other serious issues such as those involving anti-social behaviour and domestic abuse perpetrators, until at least the end of March”.
But the legislation published today, which only applies to England, also allows for shorter notice periods in cases where renters have built up six months’ worth of arrears.
Landlords seeking to evict tenants for anti-social behaviour will also need to give four weeks’ notice, while the period for perpetrators of domestic abuse will be two weeks.
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The eviction ban was introduced in March to prevent mass evictions of renters who have lost out on income during the COVID-19 pandemic but was due to be lifted on 24 August after an initial two-month extension. Following pressure from campaigners and charities, the government last week opted for an extension until 20 September.
The extension was broadly welcomed but campaign groups and politicians warned that the measures protecting tenants need to go further.
A poll done by YouGov on behalf of Shelter suggested that 322,000 of adult private renters – 4% of all those living in the sector – have fallen behind on rent payments over the course of the pandemic.
The new legislation said: “Where the landlord is seeking possession on Grounds 8, 10 or 11 and at the time the notice is served at least six months’ rent is unpaid […] court proceedings cannot begin earlier than four weeks from the date this notice is served on you.”
Ben Beadle, chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, said: “Today’s announcement provides welcome clarity about how possession cases will be handled.
“However, it will mean nothing without a complete guarantee that the courts will hear cases from 20 September.
“It is disappointing that the government has so far failed to heed the warnings of the NRLA and others that a financial package is needed to pay off rent arrears built due to COVID-19.
“In the end, this is the best way to sustain tenancies. We will continue to campaign hard for this important measure.”
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said: “The government has taken unprecedented action to support renters during the pandemic by banning evictions, preventing people getting into financial hardship and helping businesses to pay salaries.
“Our extension of the ban on evictions and legislation so landlords must now give tenants six months’ notice before they can evict until March 2021, unless in the most serious of cases, will support renters while ensuing landlords can gain access to their properties.
“We will keep these measures under review and our decisions will continue to be guided by the latest public health advice.”
Update: at 17.46pm, 28/08/20 a comment from MHCLG was added to the story.
