You may recall viewing our updates from November 2020 and January 2021 regarding the measures implemented by the Government to prevent evictions from taking place via the Public Health (Coronavirus) (Protection from Eviction) (England) Regulations 2021. The measures have been further extended from 21 February 2021 to 31 March 2021.
As tenants must still be given 14 days’ notice of the eviction, this means in reality, the earliest date for evictions to be arranged will be from 14 April 2021 – subject to any further extensions.
Landlords can apply for their case to be exempt from the restrictions (thus enabling the eviction to proceed) only if any of the following statutory exemptions apply:
- Possession orders made against trespassers;
- Possession orders made on the basis of anti-social behaviour;
- Possession orders made on the basis of a false statement;
- Possession orders made on the basis of domestic violence;
- Non occupation of a property following the death of a tenant; and
- Where there are substantial rent arrears of 6 months or more.
Landlords who have issued possession proceedings that rely on a Section 21 Notice will not be eligible to apply for the exemption regardless of the amount of arrears outstanding.
If you require further advice or information on this or other residential tenancy issues, please contact Adina-Leigh Collins or Angus Young in the Grant Saw Landlord and Tenant team.