Another week and another Newsround where the Renters Rights Bill is not hanging around.
Not only did it clear the House of Commons this week, it has also had it’s first reading in the House of Lords. The second reading is now confirmed to be the 4th February.
This means that it could in fact become law by Easter which is a lot sooner than everyone was anticipating.
You can read my summary and thoughts on the House of Commons reading on my Blog page here.. The Government has published a guide here.
Note that we have a Renters Rights Bill Online Conference 2025 on 11 and 12 March.
Courts to crumble with no additional resourcing – claim
A concern that has not been mentioned for a while is the over burdening of the courts once the Renters Rights Bill becomes law.
A property disputes lawyer, Gary Scott has bought this back into the headlines this week claiming that due to severe underfunding of the courts once the Bill becomes law, the courts will not be able to cope with the influx of claims.
He says that the government has ‘made clear that they have no intention of properly resourcing the courts and tribunal to deal with the inevitable influx of claims and additionally required court time in dealing with disputes over rent increases and possession’.
He added that Matthew Pennycook the housing minister would not comment on what the increase is expected to be and neither would the government say how that increase will be dealt with and managed in an already over burdened court system.
The current timescales under the existing workload is around 3-4 months for a claim to be dealt with. Gary Scott says
Adding to that workload burden without funding modernisation or increasing capacity is inviting significant problems ahead.
Council hits landlords with new law change
The Housing Secretary Angela Raynor announced last year that councils do not need to seek government approval to implement large licensing schemes.
Barking and Dagenham Council have wasted no time in introducing a new selective licensing scheme. From April 6th this year all landlords regardless of size must obtain a licence to rent out their properties. This is the first of it’s kind with probably many more to follow.
A council person said
Property licensing is an important tool that allows us to ensure landlords in the borough provide good quality homes for their tenants and tackle unscrupulous practices. I’m really pleased that the scheme has been approved for the whole borough.
We would expect to see many more councils now following the same path. Landlords need to be keeping a very careful watch on their councils’ licensing laws in case they change, ignorance will not be an excuse as is seen here for an HMO landlord who did not license his property and the First Tier Tribunal ruled that ignorance was not a defence. Be warned!
Here at Landlord Law we have a developed a comprehensive Local Authority Directory with information about licensing fees, whether there are additional or selective licensing schemes along with contact details.
Surge in fraudulent tenant documents
Landlords have seen a sharp rise in forged documents where tenants are having to submit their bank statements. Homeppl a tenant referencing platform says London appears to be the hit the hardest with 60% of flagged fraudulent cases.
The average annual rent was for £37,598 where £85,945 was claimed in false incomes. The 2024 State of Lettings Fraud Report claims the rise in fraudulent paperwork highlights the financial challenges faced by tenants where rents have increased by 8.7% nationwide and 10.4% in London.
EPC revaluation be realistic for landlords
The government proposes to upgrade the metrics and methodology that drive the EPC ratings. But Osborne Clarke, a legal firm has voiced its concern that this consultation is not due to happen until the second half of 2026. They warn that landlords need to be given enough time to ‘prepare for and adjust to any proposed changes’.
The government is currently stating that all private rental property will need to be of an EPC rating of C or above by 2030. But they say
While this consultation focuses on measurement and enforcement, we are also expecting an update from the government on the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards that buildings need to achieve in order to be let.
The relationship between adjusting the metrics used to measure a building’s energy efficiency and the minimum standards that must be achieved before that building can be let must be taken into account by the government in connection with reform.
Snippets
Landlords hit with former owners’ massive council tax bills
Politicians propose landlords should pay compensation to tenants who are evicted
Tenant dies after illegal eviction – landlord fined, council seeks costs
Labour faces costs of £50bn to replenish affordable housing after right to buy, report says
BBC – MPs back one-month cap on advance rent payments
See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law
Newsround will be back again next week