Tenants told how to challenge landlords with rent repayment orders

The government has released guidance for tenants on challenging landlords through rent repayment orders.

Under the Renters’ Rights Act, landlords face tougher penalties, with the maximum amount of rent they can be ordered to repay doubling from 12 to 24 months.

The government has also published separate guidance for tenants on the court eviction process under the Act.

Tenants can prove an offence has been committed

The government says the guidance is “primarily intended for tenants in the private rented sector, but councils may also find it useful when applying for Rent Repayment Orders.”

The government guidance explains that tenants can challenge their landlord by proving an offence has been committed, such as operating an unlicensed HMO or failing to obtain a selective licence.

According to the government guidance, tenants can check whether a landlord has committed an offence by:

• Typing the name of their council followed by “landlord licensing scheme” into a search engine to find details of any schemes in place.
• Searching for the council’s “landlord licensing register”. The guidance notes that some councils publish a public register of licensed properties, while others do not. If a property does not appear, this does not necessarily mean it is unlicensed, as registers may not always be up to date.
• Contacting the council directly if the property cannot be found on the register.

The government guidance advises tenants to also include the address, the dates they lived at the property and the number of unrelated people they shared the home with

It also says tenants should ask the council:

• whether the property is licensable
• if so, whether it currently holds a licence under any local scheme
• whether a valid licence application or Temporary Exemption Notice (TEN) has been submitted
• and, if applicable, the effective date of that application or TEN

Selective licence offence

The government guidance says that to prove a landlord has committed an offence by failing to hold a selective licence, tenants must show:

• the council had a selective licensing scheme covering the property
• the property was privately rented
• the landlord did not hold a licence

It explains that tenants should include evidence in their application bundle such as:

• a copy of the council’s licensing scheme and confirmation it covered their postcode
• proof the property was privately rented, including witness statements, tenancy agreements and deposit documents
• confirmation from the council that the property was not licensed

The guidance also advises including supporting material such as communications with the landlord or letting agent.

Elsewhere in the guidance, it gives a list of the defences landlords may use such as reasonable excuse. The guidance says: “To argue this successfully, the First Tier Tribunal needs to be satisfied that the landlord has a valid reason for not meeting the legal requirement.”

Severe consequences for landlords

As previously reported by Property118, Landlord Licensing & Defence expert Des Taylor warns rent repayment orders are a serious offence with potentially severe consequences for landlords.

He said: “Rent repayment orders are strict liability offences. If a property was unlicensed when the law required one, the landlord is guilty regardless of whether the agent failed them or they were unaware of the requirement.”

The only defence, Mr Taylor says, is to have the evidence that proves the landlord’s case.

This means time-stamped proof of a licence application, payment receipts, bank statements, council acknowledgements and detailed phone call records. Without this, the tribunal will take the council’s word that no valid licence existed.