Renters Reform Bill Passes without No Fault Eviction Ban Timeline

The Renters Reform Bill 2024 has passed its third reading in the House of Lords.  This now passes on to the House of Commons again.

The major exclusion being no timeline being included for the no-fault eviction ban.  There is also a stumbling block in that the government wants to strengthen the landlord position in eviction of anti-social tenants which needs a simpler and quicker courts system to evict disruptive tenants.

Key Contents of Renters Reform Bill

• Abolition of fixed term tenancies including student lets.
• Abolition of Section 21 orders i.e.no fault evictions unless moving in yourself, selling up or moving in close relatives. (this is the part with no timeline yet).
• Banning discriminatory practices such as no children or no benefit claimants.
• Conversion of Assured Shorthold Tenancies into Assured Tenancies i.e., open ended tenancies.
• Decent Homes Standard for private renters.
• New Section 8 Grounds for possession and repossession.
• New provisions for rent increases and repayment of rents paid in advance
• New rights for tenants to request consent for a pet which cannot be unreasonably withheld.
• Private Rented Sector Ombudsman.
• Private Rented Sector Database (aka Rented Property Portal) – a local authority registration and database of landlords.

Comment

The Renters Reform Bill will offer new protection and additional rights for tenants but we agree that it needs strenghthening to protect lanlords from ant-social tenants and non-payers.  The rules are there but the court system needs a new approach to speed this process up.