‘Longer than Brexit’: Renters criticize five-year wait for no-fault eviction ban

The government has been accused of “betraying tenants” on the fifth anniversary of the “failure” of a pledge to ban no-fault evictions – with figures showing more than 80,000 families have since been put at risk of homelessness.

former conservative prime minister theresa may On 15 April 2019, she committed to repealing Article 21 (S21) notifications, which was also reflected in the manifesto of her successor Boris Johnson.

But last month, the government announced Plans to ban them postponed indefinitelyawaiting court reform.

Section 21 orders allow landlords to evict tenants with two months’ notice without having to provide a reason for doing so.

Housing campaigners say housing is a major factor in the rise in homelessness.

Analysis of government data by the Renters Reform Coalition (RRC) found that since the pledge to ban S21 was made, at least 84,460 private renting households have applied for homelessness prevention support after being notified.

Campaigners believe the true number of “no-fault” evictions will be much higher because the figures only cover those who claim to have parliamentary support.

Tom Darling, RRC campaign manager, said: “It’s ridiculous that the government has now officially taken five years to implement these fundamental reforms, longer than it took the UK to leave the EU.”

He said S21 had “caused real human suffering and damage” and that there were likely “millions of other tenants who were evicted but ultimately did not call their local authorities”.

“Retaliatory expulsion”

Tom Cliffe, 34, was served with a Section 21 order in July last year after 18 months of complaints about the state of disrepair at his property in Ealing, west London, where he was living every day. Monthly rent and bills payment of £1,000.

He believes it was a “retaliatory eviction” because his four other roommates were not notified and he was not informed why he was being notified.

Tom, who works in the film industry, spent months and “more than £2,000” trying to fight the eviction but gave up because “everything was going in the landlord’s favour”.

“It’s a huge mess,” he told Sky News.

“I have made my home here for six years. I take great care of the property and I always pay my rent on time.

“It’s really upsetting to be evicted by a landlord on a whim when you’re in your 30s, and to have a house so hard to buy.”

Tom is now faced with paying up to 50% of the rent for the new property he is moving into – The rental crisis has caused average rents to surge by 9%.

“It all feels a bit corrupt. The fact that so many councilors are landlords seems clear that this is affecting [S21] Delays,” Tom said.

Gove ‘selling tenants downstream’

Housing Secretary Michael Gove has pledged to ban S21 through the long-delayed Renters Reform Bill, which was introduced to parliament in May and is seen as a “once-in-a-generation” shakeup of renters’ rights.

But last month he was accused of “selling tenants downstream” and backed down to the landlord lobby after announcing that the power to issue tenants would remain in place pending an assessment of whether the courts could handle the change.

Some MPs have warned that scrapping no-fault evictions would increase pressure on the courts as landlords would need to go through the legal process to regain possession of their properties if they have legitimate grounds.

Other changes to the bill include an amendment to prevent tenants from terminating within the first six months of a tenancy. Initially the bill proposed allowing tenants to terminate their tenancy at any time with two months’ notice.

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Campaigners warned it would trap tenants into unsafe and falsely advertised tenancies, benefit “rogue landlords” and risk harming victims of domestic violence.

The RRC wants to strengthen the bill by extending the eviction notice period from two months to four months to give renters enough time to find a suitable place to live.

They also want a protection period of at least two years during which tenants cannot be evicted on new no-fault grounds, and limits on rent increases during the lease term to stop landlords using rent increases as de facto no-fault expulsion.

‘A complete betrayal’

Labor accused the government of a “complete betrayal of renters across the UK”.

Angela Rayner, the shadow housing secretary and deputy leader, said: “Hundreds of thousands of people have been at risk of homelessness since that empty promise five years ago. There are now children who have been living under the Tories’ pledge for the first time. Not even born yet, in school.”

“Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives have always chosen party over country, it’s in their DNA. Only Labor would ban no-fault evictions immediately, no ifs, no buts.”

A spokesman for the Department of Housing and Communities Upgrade said: “We are committed to delivering the landmark Tenants (Reform) Bill which will deliver a fairer private rented sector for tenants and landlords.

“This bill will repeal Section 21 evictions – providing more security in people’s homes and giving them the right to challenge bad practice.”