In recent years, talk of reform to the private rental sector has never been far from the political agenda, but what exactly is set to change?

The most discussed of the proposed reforms has been the intended abolishment of the “Section 21” procedure. Most political parties have spoken about their desire to bring an end to no fault evictions. They say that this is to provide stability to the private rented sector and long term security for tenants before, during and after their tenancies.

The current Section 21 procedure or more commonly titled the “no fault eviction” process allows a landlord to recover possession of a property following service of a Section 21 Notice requiring no fault or breach of legislation to be listed. If the tenant does not leave before the specified date, a landlord is at liberty to pursue possession action through the courts. Tenants may however have a valid defence to such action if the notice was not served correctly, if a deposit was not protected, if gas and electrical checks were not in place, if not served with correct information regarding their rights as a tenant or where the property is in disrepair.

The new Labour Government have appeared intent on bringing sweeping reform to this area and their intentions were widely publicised throughout their election campaign. It is perhaps no surprise that just shy of 3 months into the Keir Starmer era, we see the Renters Rights Bill (‘RRB’) making its way through Parliament.

So, what exactly is the RRB? Deputy Prime Minster Angela Rayner was recently quoted as saying that:

“There can be no more dither and delay. We must overhaul renting and rebalance the relationship between tenant and landlord. This Bill (the RRB) will do just that and tenants can be reassured this Government will protect them.”

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/landmark-reforms-to-give-greater-security-for-11-million-renters

The draft RRB proposes the following:

• Abolish the S21 “no fault” eviction procedure;
• Apply the Decent Home Standards to prosecute landlords failing to address serious safety issues and interduce Awaab’s law to empower a tenant to challenge such conditions;
• Remove the ability to increase rent more than once, per year;
• Bans to accepting bids over the asking price for advertised rent;

Whilst it is not disputed that a resolution to the housing crisis is desperately needed, the RRB and whatever final form it takes, looks set to be revolutionary.

One could argue however that current legislation allows for tenants to already challenge disrepair or poor practice by being able to raise a valid defence to any claim for possession using the no-fault procedure. However, stability and safety reforms during a tenancy are likely to be welcomed by many. Balancing the interests of both landlords and tenants is going to be no small task and whether we will see reform to other routes to possession remains to be seen.

Keep an eye out for more on this topic throughout October from the Dispute Resolution team at MKB Solicitors LLP where we are set to delve further into this area in our latest mini-blog series. We will take a look at current statutory obligations of landlords, the “fault” eviction process and the different types of tenancy – some arising in unexpected circumstances, to name but a few.