Why Section 8s Fail

The main problems encountered when relying on the Section 8 Notice for seeking possession or/and compensation are:

Prior to serving the Notice –

The process relies on the principle that Landlord or Agent had taken reasonable steps to allow the tenant to remedy the issue prior to embarking on legal action.

The Landlord was eligible to rely on claims for arrears in that Section 47 and Section 48 of the Housing Acts had been complied with. This means the tenant was in receipt of a valid address in England or Wales so that they were able contact the Landlord or Agents in respect of Tenancy and Rent Payable issues.

The Notice itself -

The Section 8 Notice contains mandatory text and is very precise in how this must be completed. An error in completion can invalidate in entirety the Notice – see How to complete a Section 8 Notice [Serving to, address, issue, expiry, inclusion of clauses]. The validity of the Notice is often only picked up at the court hearing and then the case is dismissed which is very disconcerting as it is often up to two months after the notice had been issued that the landlord discovers this anomaly. The moral is to use a reliable source.