Serious doubts remain over whether local authorities can effectively enforce the new Renters’ Rights Act, with enforcement teams already stretched thin and most councils failing to act against rogue landlords.

Figures obtained by The Guardian through Freedom of Information requests show that between 2022 and 2024 tenants lodged more than 300,000 complaints about unsafe or unlawful rentals. Yet only 640 landlords were prosecuted and 4,702 civil penalty notices issued.

In total, fewer than 2% of complaints led to any formal enforcement, while two-thirds of councils in England did not prosecute a single landlord during the period.

Starting in May 2026, councils will be legally required to take formal enforcement action against breaches of the Renters’ Rights Act. Penalties will carry a minimum fine of £7,000, rising to as much as £40,000 for the most serious offences.

This marks a significant departure from the current system, where authorities have often relied on informal warnings or declined to pursue cases due to cost considerations. Under the new framework, councils will no longer have discretion to avoid enforcement, ensuring a tougher and more consistent approach to landlord compliance.

Campaigners argue the divide between regulation and enforcement is widening and a campaigns manager at Generation Rent stressed: “Councils simply don’t have the resources to enforce, leaving landlords across the country not fulfilling their obligations, and renters living in awful conditions that impact their physical and mental health.”

Surprisingly a former enforcement officer Henry Dawson has highlighted the scale of resource decline in local government, estimating that council enforcement budgets have fallen by 41% since 2010, while staffing levels have dropped by more than a third. He warned that without long-term investment, the government’s reforms could amount to “symbolic rights for tenants rather than actual rights.”

The Government has pledged £18 million in so-called “burdens funding” to help councils implement the new regime. Yet local authority leaders argue the sum is far from adequate, warning it will not provide the resources required to deliver enforcement at the scale and consistency demanded.