Update written by Hannah Stevens, Litigation Solicitor
The Renters’ Rights Bill (the “Bill”) is currently at the Committee Stage in the House of Lords. The first sitting of this stage is due to take place on 22 April 2025 with the last sitting on 6 May 2025. Following this, the Bill is expected to move swiftly through the Report Stage and Third Reading within the House of Lords to the Final Stages where it will receive Royal Assent. This draft legislation could therefore become law as early as May or June 2025, meaning that any landlord wishing to evict their tenant under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 (the “1988 Act”) needs to act now.
Once enforced, the Bill will become the Renters’ Rights Act (the “Act”). The Act will have retrospective effect so landlords will not be able to seek possession under section 21 of the 1988 Act regardless of when the assured shorthold tenancy was granted. However, there are exceptions to this in the form of statutory transitional provisions.
Once the Bill is enforced, the current draft provisions outline that to evict a tenant under section 21 a landlord must:
a) Serve a valid section 21 Notice on their tenant before the Renters’ Rights Act comes into force; and
b) Issue possession proceedings before the earliest of the following:
i. Where two months’ notice is required, six months from the date of service of the section 21 notice
ii. Where more than two months’ notice is required, four months from the expiry date of the section 21 notice
iii. Three months from the commencement date of the new legislation.
If a landlord fails to issue proceedings before the earliest of the dates at b), they can no longer seek possession under section 21 of the 1988 Act and would have to seek possession under Section 8 instead. The accelerated court procedure (available in certain circumstances when using section 21) will no longer be available. Using the standard procedure will increase the length of time landlords are waiting for possession.
As long as the Bill does not ‘ping pong’ between the House of Lords and the House of Commons, the date at iii) could be as early as August 2025 so it is important that landlords seeking possession act swiftly to serve valid section 21 notices as soon as possible.
Delays can be caused where the requisite information and documents have not been given to a tenant, or where section 21 notices are not served correctly. Seeking legal advice is a prudent way of ensuring all the paperwork is in place, and notices drafted and served correctly, to avoid missing the impending deadline.
If you would like advice in respect of bringing a possession claim under section 21 whilst you still can, please feel free to email me or contact the team on 020 8858 6971.