8th
Dec 2020
A trade body has listed a number of radical changes that the government needs to include in the Renters Reform Bill with the most important being a reform of repossession rights.
The government will undoubtedly scrap Section 21 next year and the trade body is demanding fundamental reforms must be made to repossessions that will be fair to both landlords and tenants.
The suggested changes to the eviction process lists the reasons that landlords should be able to regain their properties including wanting to sell up, rental arrears and anti-social behaviour.
When possession notices are disputed the organisation is urging the government to bankroll a new conciliation service that mirrors the employment dispute body, ACAS.
The sole aim of the service would be to advise and guide landlords and tenants to resolve issues, without having to pay out court costs and should alleviate the considerable stress for both parties.
For serious cases where tenants are involved in criminal activity and domestic violence, then these should go straight to court, however the majority of cases should be handled by the conciliatory service.
In theory the service will help a tenant and landlord come to an agreeable conclusion to either carry on with an ongoing tenancy or bring it to an end that works for both parties; the service will provide support and advice to the tenant and landlords to support their respective cases.
If landlords break the the terms of the agreement they will face an automatic ban from being able to repossess their property for six months. If tenants fail to abide by the agreed terms the landlord’s case will be prioritised and fast tracked through the courts.
The trade body believes that as repossession cases take such a long time to be ruled on by courts, which has been further exacerbated by the the pandemic, its proposals will drastically reduce courts’ backlogs which would allow them to address the remaining cases far quicker.
A spokesperson for the trade body said: “As the government prepares this important Bill, it needs to enjoy the full confidence of both landlords and tenants. Our proposals are for a fundamental reform of re-possession rights which strike the balance between the needs of both. The over-riding aim is to sustain tenancies wherever possible or bring them to an end in a collaborative way.
“We hope that ministers will accept our proposals and act on them soon.”