Private landlords group says replacement grounds for section 21 for possession "must be robust, comprehensive and workable"

The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has told the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Select Committee that the replacement grounds for section 21 "no-fault" evictions must be robust, comprehensive, and workable to ensure they have the confidence of landlords.

Ben Beadle, the CEO of the NRLA, submitted written evidence to the select committee as part of its inquiry into the Fairer Renting White Paper, which sets out plans to abolish section 21 no-fault evictions, apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector (PRS) for the first time, and introduce a housing ombudsman covering all PRS landlords.

A section 21 no-fault eviction allows landlords to evict a tenant with two months' notice without having to give any reason.

Mr Beadle provided the select committee with three recommendations. The first suggested that the replacement grounds for section 21 for possession must be "robust, comprehensive, and workable to ensure they have the confidence of landlords".  

Alongside this, he argued that planned court reforms "should not just be enacted but seen to be working before the Government transfers to the new system of tenancies without Section 21".

Thirdly, Mr Beadle called on the Government to implement in full the recommendations of the Victims Commissioner's report concerning anti-social behaviour.

Recommendations in the 2019 report included revising the Victims' Code of Practice to recognise the victims of persistent ASB to afford them the same entitlement to support as all other crime victims when they reach the 'three complaints' threshold needed to activate the Community Trigger.

The NRLA said its submission was heavily influenced by a large survey of more than 3,000 private landlords, "who expressed a great deal of unease about the Government's proposals", particularly the proposals to replace the section 21 no-fault possession process.  

The survey found that while the majority of landlords did not see the removal of section 21 as fatal to their businesses, a third were extremely concerned by its impact, and two-thirds were doubtful that the necessary court reforms would be effective.   

In a statement detailing its recommendations, the NRLA said: "These recommendations build on our priority concerns around the workability of the court process, the impact that these reforms will have on student landlords, and the lack of solutions offered by the Government to the problem of dealing with anti-social behaviour in our sector once the no-fault route is removed."

The NRLA is the UK's largest membership organisation for private residential landlords, with over 95,000 members. The group lobby the Government in order to seek a "fair legal and regulatory environment for both landlord and tenant", according to its website.

Mr Beadle will give evidence to the select committee in person early next month (5 September).

Adam Carey