Households have approached councils more than 80,000 times for homelessness support due to Section 21 ‘no fault’ eviction notices since Government vowed to bring in ban: research

Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions have led to households being forced to approach their local authority for homelessness support after receiving a notice more than 80,000 times since the Government announced it would ban the practice, research by Homeless Link has suggested.

The Government first announced in Parliament on 15 April 2019 that it would consult on new legislation to abolish Section 21 evictions, with then Prime Minister Theresa May stating that private landlords “will no longer be able to unexpectedly evict families with only 8 weeks’ notice.”

The Government then recommitted to this promise in its 2019 general election manifesto.

Homeless Link, a charity for organisations working directly with people who become homeless in England, said its analysis had revealed that Section 21 evictions had led to households being officially threatened with homelessness 84,650 times in the five years since the month of the announcement.

“This is the equivalent of 52 households being threatened with homelessness per day, due to Section 21 evictions, on average during the data period. This makes Section 21 evictions one of the largest causes of homelessness in this time,” it said.

The research indicated that the number of Section 21 evictions leading to households being threatened with homelessness peaked between April and June 2023 at 6,830, a 37% increase on the same time period in 2019 and a 330% increase on the same time period in 2020, when the Government put restrictions on evictions due to the pandemic, the charity said.

The Renters Reform Bill, which would end Section 21 evictions, is currently at the report stage in the House of Commons.

In February Secretary of State Michael Gove committed to introducing the proposed ban on section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions before the next general election.

When asked in a BBC interview whether he could guarantee the ban would take place before then, Gove replied “Yes. We have a Bill. It has gone through its stages in the House of Commons and that Bill does a number of things to help people in the private rented sector accommodation, including ending no fault evictions.

Earlier this month the Local Government Association (LGA) voiced concern that proposed amendments to the Bill tabled by the Government could weaken key measures, including the ban on Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions, the redress scheme and essential enforcement measures.

Homeless Link CEO Rick Henderson said: “Everyone deserves a safe, secure place to live. It is clearly not right that someone can be evicted from their home for no reason with just two months’ notice. The Government identified this in 2019, but its inaction has led to tens of thousands of households unnecessarily facing homelessness.

“A huge shortage of genuinely affordable housing means when a household approaches their local authority with a Section 21 notice, and the local authority has a statutory duty to help them, often all they can do is try to keep them in that property, find them another private rented property or, as a last resort, place them in temporary accommodation at huge expense. Those who the local authority don’t have a duty to support tragically often end up sleeping rough.

“The reported watering down of the Renters Reform Bill will be devastating for renters and local authorities across the country. The Government proved in the pandemic that it can take decisive action on this issue. It must now stand up to its back benchers and pass the Renters Reform Bill without the leaked amendments, fulfilling its now five-year-old promise.”

Harry Rodd