If you have a tenancy you have protection from eviction. To gain lawful possession of your home your landlord must follow the rules laid out in legislation.
The procedure that your landlord must follow will depend on what type of tenancy you have. Always get advice if you have been given notice and do not just move out.
Assured shorthold tenancies: section 21 notice
Your landlord does not have to have a reason to issue a section 21 notice. If all the paperwork relating to the tenancy has been issued correctly then there is no defence against the possession action and the court must make an order. The notice must be served on a specific form - a handwritten letter is not valid.
You are always entitled to two months’ notice and when that notice expires your landlord must take you to court to get a possession order.
Your landlord cannot issue a section 21 notice if any of the following apply:
- it is less than six months since the tenancy started
- the fixed term of the tenancy has not ended, unless there is a clause in the contract which allows you to do this
- the property is categorised as a house in multiple occupation and the landlord does not have a house in multiple occupation licence from us - find out more on the Government website
- we have served an improvement notice on the property in the last six months
- we have served a notice in the last six months that says we will do emergency works on the property
- the tenancy started after April 2007 and your tenancy deposit has not been placed in a deposit protection scheme - find out more on the Government website
If you moved into your property after October 2015, your landlord must have also given you:
- the property’s energy performance certificate - find out more on the Government website
- a current gas safety record for the property - find out more on the gas safe register website
- the Government’s most up to date how to rent guide which you can find on the Government website
Assured and assured shorthold tenancies: section 8 notice
A section 8 notice is issued when your landlord is claiming that you have broken the terms of the tenancy.
The notice must be on a specific form, called notice seeking possession of a property let on an assured tenancy or an assured agricultural occupancy. You can see this form on the Government website.
It must state clearly the terms of the tenancy the landlord believes have been broken and give details.
The length of the notice will be between two weeks and two months, depending on which grounds for possession have been claimed.
Your landlord must take you to court and prove their claim in order to get a possession order. We may be able to help you prepare a defence against the landlord’s claim and the court desk service can represent you in court.
What happens after a notice expires
Your landlord must make an application to the county court for a possession order. The court will send you a copy of the claim form and you have 14 days to challenge the application and submit a defence. There will then be a hearing.
At the hearing, the judge might:
- dismiss the court case – no order will be made and the hearing will end
- adjourn the hearing – it will be moved to a later date if a judge believes a decision cannot be made on the day
- make an order – a judge’s legal decision on what should happen
In the case of a section 21 notice, if all the paperwork is correct the judge must make an order.
With a section 8 notice, the judge will dismiss the claim if the landlord cannot prove their case, the landlord has not followed the correct procedure, or by the time of the court hearing you have corrected the tenancy breach, for example you have cleared your rent arrears.
Court orders
The judge could make one of the following types of court order:
- Order for possession or outright possession order – you will be given a date to leave the property, which will usually be 14 or 28 days after the court hearing. If you do not leave by this date, your landlord will apply to the bailiff for a warrant to evict you.
- Suspended order for possession – if you can reach agreement with your landlord and make an offer to the court, the judge may make a suspended order. This means you can stay in your property as long as you make rent payments, or obey the conditions set out in the order. If you breach the order your landlord can apply for a warrant to evict you.
Further information
More information about tenancies and your rights can be found on: