The aims of the Renters’ Rights Bill

The Labour government will soon be bringing in to force the Renters’ Rights Bill, which will overhaul rental laws, and aims to improve living conditions for tenants and balance the rights of tenants and landlords. It is expected to come into effect in the UK between July and October 2025.

Solicitor Katie Wright from WHN Solicitors’ Clitheroe office, provides an update for landlords on the objectives of the new Bill.

Abolition of Section 21 notices

Under the present legislation, a Section 21 notice enables landlords to remove tenants without having to provide any reason for doing so, providing the fixed-term tenancy agreement has come to an end.

Landlords need only give a tenant two months’ notice under this procedure, and providing all the paperwork is correct, the court can make an order for possession without a court hearing.

Under the new Bill, landlords will no longer be able to rely upon Section 21 notices. Instead, their only option will be to proceed down the Section 8 route.

At present, the Section 8 route only provides 14 grounds upon which a landlord can obtain possession, however, these grounds are being extended and among other circumstances, will allow landlords to more easily gain possession of their property if they or a family member intends to move into the property, or if they wish to sell the property.

Periodic tenancies replacing fixed tenancy periods

The new law will remove fixed term assured tenancies, meaning a landlord cannot tie their tenant into a tenancy for a certain period of time, for example six months or 12 months.

Instead, all tenancies will be periodic tenancies, which will enable a tenant to end their tenancy whenever they so wish, by giving two months’ notice to their landlord.

Regulation of rent increases

The Renters’ Rights Bill sets out a new stricter regime for rent increases. At present, a tenancy agreement can include a mid-term rent review clause, however, these will be abolished.

Instead, a landlord will need to give a tenant two months’ notice of any intention to increase rent, and any increase must be considered fair and reflect the current market value of the property.

A landlord will only be able to increase the rent through this process once a year.

Prohibition of discriminatory practices

The new Bill prohibits discriminatory practices, such as terms which restrict the letting of a landlord’s property to families with children, or those receiving housing benefit.

If such a term is included in the agreement, the clause will effectively be void, and a landlord cannot be held liable for breaching that term of the agreement.

Application of the Decent Homes Standard

The Decent Homes Standard has been around for some time in relation to social housing. However, the Bill will extend this to the private rented sector. The standard is to ensure all tenants live in a property that is a reasonable state of repair, has reasonably modern facilities, and provides a reasonable degree of thermal comfort.

Awwab’s Law, which was brought in to force in 2023 will also be extended to the private rental sector. This law ensures that landlords are held accountable if they fail to address health hazards, such as damp and mould or excess cold, within a reasonable time period.

It is believed that some 21 per cent of privately rented properties do not meet the Decent Homes Standard and will require improvement works as a result of the new law. Failure to meet the standard could result in a landlord facing criminal charges, and potentially leading to ‘a banning order offence’, which will prevent a landlord form renting out properties.

This article is an update on Katie’s previous blog post: What landlords should know about plans to ban section 21 evictions

Based within the private litigation department at our Clitheroe office, Katie’s areas of expertise including residential landlord and tenant disputes, contractual disputes, land disputes and boundary disputes, as well as debt recovery.

If you are a landlord seeking advice regarding the Renters’ Rights Bill, please contact Katie on 01200 408 303 or by email [email protected]