£40K Fines and compo *
From 1 May 2026, landlords and letting agents face a harsher penalty landscape. Small mistakes, technical failures and poor process can all trigger serious financial consequences.
Fines now range from £50 to £40,000+
Add legal costs, rent repayment, enforcement action and failed possession, and the real cost is often much higher.
How PIMS Helps Protect You
The safest landlords are not the most experienced — they are the most organised. These core PIMS tools are designed to reduce risk before it becomes a fine, a claim or a failed case.
These are not documents — they are protection.
Most fines and disputes arise from weak process, missing evidence or poor setup. These tools exist to stop that happening.
How Enforcement Really Works
The reality
- Separate breaches can attract separate penalties
- Repeat conduct increases fines
- Serious behaviour moves towards £40,000
- Penalties can replace prosecution
The council’s aces
- Unpaid penalties and RROs can become court-enforced debts
- That can lead to bailiffs and, in some cases, a charge over property
- Licensing failures can lead to management orders and loss of control
Full Penalties Matrix by Statute
Expand each statute to see specific breaches, offences and the £ scale of exposure.
Protection from Eviction Act 1977 — penalty £35,000
| Offence |
Civil penalty |
| Unlawful eviction and harassment (s1(2) and (3)) |
£35,000 |
Housing Act 1988 breaches and offences — fines from £3,000 to £30,000
| Breach / offence |
Penalty |
| Attempting to let the property for a fixed term (s16E(1)(a)) |
£4,000 |
| Attempting to end the tenancy by service of a notice to quit (s16E(1)(b)) |
£6,000 |
| Attempting to end the tenancy orally, or require that it is ended orally (s16E(1)(c)) |
£6,000 |
| Serving a possession notice that attempts to end the tenancy outside the prescribed section 8 process (s16E(1)(d)) |
£6,000 |
| Relying on a ground where the person does not reasonably believe possession can be obtained (s16E(1)(e)) |
£6,000 |
| Failing to provide prior notice that a ground may be used (s16E(1)(f)) |
£3,000 |
| Failing to issue a written statement of terms within 28 days (s16D) |
£4,000 |
| Failing to provide an existing tenant with prescribed Renters’ Rights information (Sch 6 para 7) |
£4,000 |
| Relying on a ground knowing possession could not be obtained, or being reckless (s16J(1)) |
£30,000 |
| Reletting or remarketing within the 12 month no-let period after moving or selling grounds (s16J(2)) |
£25,000 |
| Continuing breach or repeat breach within 5 years (s16J(3) and (4)) |
Double the starting level for the two constituent breaches added together |
Housing Act 2004 offences — fines from £3,000 to £25,000
| Offence |
Penalty |
| Failure to comply with an improvement notice (s30(1)) |
£25,000 |
| Mandatory HMO unlicensed (s72(1)) |
£17,000 |
| Additional HMO unlicensed (s72(1)) |
£17,000 |
| Knowingly permitting over-occupation of an HMO (s72(2)) |
£20,000 |
| Property subject to selective licensing unlicensed (s95(1)) |
£12,000 |
| Failure to comply with an overcrowding notice (s139(7)) |
£20,000 |
| Failure to provide information to the occupier |
£3,000 |
| Failure to take safety measures |
£20,000 |
| Failure to maintain water supply and drainage |
£10,000 |
| Failure to supply and maintain gas/electricity or supply gas safety certificate |
£12,000 |
| Failure to maintain common parts |
£7,000 |
| Failure to maintain living accommodation |
£7,000 |
| Failure to provide adequate waste disposal facilities |
£7,000 |
No starting point for civil penalties for breaches of licensing conditions under sections 72(3) and 95(2) is set out in the national guidance because those conditions vary between local authorities. Councils are expected to publish their own starting levels.
Housing and Planning Act 2016 — penalty £35,000
| Offence |
Penalty |
| Breach of a banning order (s21(1)) |
£35,000 |
Renters’ Rights Act 2025 — fines from £3,000 to £6,000, with wider regime up to £40,000
| Breach |
Penalty |
| Discrimination against those on benefits or with children in the lettings process (ss33 and 34) |
£6,000 |
| Failure to specify proposed rent within a written advertisement or offer (s56(2)) |
£3,000 |
| Inviting, encouraging or accepting any offer of rent greater than the advertised rate (s56(3)) |
£4,000 |
Tenant Fees Act / deposit law / Right to Rent / Rent Repayment Orders — exposure from refunds and 1x–3x deposit to 12 months’ rent
| Area |
£ scale / exposure |
Key message |
| Tenant Fees Act prohibited fees / holding deposit misuse |
Civil penalties and refunds |
The money can come back out of your pocket and affect wider compliance. |
| Deposit not protected / prescribed information not given within 30 days |
1x to 3x deposit |
Small technical defects become expensive claims. This is exactly why PIMS treats setup and evidence as risk control. |
| Right to Rent failures |
Civil penalty exposure |
Recorded checks are what give the landlord a statutory excuse. |
| Rent Repayment Orders |
Up to 12 months’ rent |
This can sit on top of other penalties and, if unpaid, becomes a debt problem. |
Councils Are Already Fining Landlords
Liverpool City Council
fined Ballpark Property Limited over £12,000 after eight Housing Act 2004 offences for unlicensed properties.
Birmingham City Council
reported £450,000 in fines issued as part of its crackdown on unlicensed rental properties.
Haringey Council
issued a £12,500 penalty against a landlord and managing agent for an unlicensed HMO with serious safety hazards.
Brent Council warning
tenants can seek a Rent Repayment Order for up to 12 months’ rent where the offence qualifies.
Quick Risk Check
If any of these areas are weak, act now. Use the linked PIMS pages and documents to tighten the process.
Check Licensing Risk
Check local licensing and wider compliance obligations before the problem appears.
Join PIMS
Membership starts from £30 a year. That is not the expensive part. The expensive part is discovering too late that one avoidable mistake has become a major legal or financial problem.
Join PIMS
Fit for Habitation|March 2019 The ACT is intended to define minimum standards a rental property MUST
be and makes a clearer pathway way for Tenants to be compensated|https://www.pims.co.uk/fit_for_habitation_act_march_2019/
Guarantor|The person who provides a guarantee and promises to make payment good should the person responsible for the agreement fail|http://www.pims.co.uk/guarantors/
MEES|The Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard (MEES) Landlords are charged with the requirement to bring their rental property to a minimum EPC rating of E. Property with F and G rating will effectively be banned from the rental market April 2018 |http://www.pims.co.uk/epc/
Section 11|Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 places an obligation on the landlord to maintain the structure and exterior of the property, including installations for the supply of water, gas and electricity, heating systems, drainage and sanitary appliances|http://www.pims.co.uk/landlord-section-11-repairs/
serving date|This date is the date deemed received at the property - as an example if posted allow for posting days|/serving-notice-on-a-tenant-delivery-days/
Tenancy Application|The objective of vetting is to empower yourself so you can make an informed decision as to the calibre of the prospective person. Making your decision on facts and figures is invaluable and this is why you should always take references. The application form also provides you with permission to perform credits. This form details all the information you should ever require deal with most eventualities including absconding tenants|http://www.pims.co.uk/doc/57/
Tenant Fees|From June 2019 where renting properties in England gone are the days of charging for admin, letting fees, vetting, references,
inventory, check in, check out, cleaning, pet insurance or ANY other fee
that is not explicitly permitted within the legislation. |https://www.pims.co.uk/ban_letting_fees_act_2019/