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Update: Courts open with bailiff restrictions
Following successful lobbying by the NRLA, courts have reopened across England and Wales. During the national lockdown in England, there are restrictions on enforcement of possessions until at least 21 February. In Wales, restrictions are in place until the end of March and will be reviewed every three weeks. For more information see our resources section.
Campaign Overview
The Government has made changes to notice periods in England, with six months now the default for possession cases, with exceptions for cases of antisocial behaviour, domestic abuse, and arrears of six months' or more, plus Right to Rent breaches and false statements. Similar changes have also been made in Wales, with exceptions only for antisocial behaviour.
With private landlords now facing waits of up to two years to regain possession, they cannot be expected to continue to foot the bill for government failure. There must now be a plan to support households to pay their bills and to compensate landlords fully for their lost income.
We are calling for direct financial support into the sector, to support landlords and tenants who have faced arrears during the pandemic and through no fault of their own. While measures through the welfare system have been welcome, more needs to be done to alleviate Covid-related arrears, and help landlords and tenants sustain tenancies.
The NRLA is lobbying hard on your behalf but it’s vital that individual landlords also make their voices heard by contacting your MP.
Key asks
The NRLA is calling for the Government to support the private rented sector:
- Interest free, government guaranteed hardship loans for tenants. Providing tenants with a means to pay off COVID-related arrears will sustain tenancies and remove any risk of eviction as furlough is removed. These should be paid directly to landlords and should cover all arrears accumulated since the start of the pandemic. This has already been introduced in Wales.
- Income support for landlords. If a tenant refuses, or is unable, to take up a loan then landlords must be able to cover arrears through grants.
We have made a joint call with Citizens Advice, Crisis, Generation Rent, Shelter and ARLA Propertymark for direct funding to support landlords and tenants.
We also continue to call for possession and court reform.
Coronavirus in Wales
Information on how coronavirus is affecting the private rented sector in Wales.
Government fails to tackle Covid rent debt crisis
The eviction ban in England has been extended for six weeks, in a move described as a 'sticking plaster' by landlords. Current restrictions were due to end on Monday. The NRLA says the move will do nothing to support landlords and tenants long term and what is needed is a comprehensive financial package, to allow tenants to continue to pay their rent without building unmanageable debt.
Ministers need to get a grip of the rent debt crisis
The National Residential Landlords Association, Big Issue and Ride Out Recession Alliance, Shelter, ARLA Propertymark, the Nationwide Building Society, and StepChange the Debt Charity have issued a statement following the re-introduction of a national lockdown.
More than 800,000 renters in arrears due to Covid
Over 800,000 private renters in England and Wales have built rent arrears since lockdown measures began according to estimates from new research published today.
COVID Rent Arrears Crisis
This piece looks at new research carried out for the NRLA by Dynata. More than 2,077 private renters in England and Wales were surveyed between 17th November and 9th December 2020.
BLOG: Wales enforces "winter truce"
The Welsh Government recently laid regulations to enforce the winter truce that bailiffs and High Court Enforcement Officers (HCEO) have been asked to follow over the Christmas period, from 11 December 2020 to 11 January 2021. In this blog NRLA Wales policy officer Calum Davies explains what landlords in Wales need to know.
Why are we calling for these measures?
We know that most tenants have continued to pay rent; this has been assisted by the Government’s furlough scheme and as the measures reduce, there is a risk that tenants will build unsustainable arrears if additional support is not provided.
The NRLA commissioned research company Dynata to conduct a survey of 2,243 private rented sector tenants in England and Wales on our behalf in July 2020. The research shows:
- 87% have paid their rent as usual since lockdown measures were introduced.
- A further 8% of tenants have come to an arrangement with their landlord / letting agent such as a reduced rent, a rent-free period, or a repayment plan.
- Less than a third of all those with arrears (2% of the entire survey sample) have been served with a possession notice.
In addition, we know that a number of landlords are unable to regain possession, even in cases of anti-social behaviour, domestic abuse or significant arrears accrued before the coronavirus restrictions. We are sharing case studies on social media and our website, as well as using them in lobbying; submit yours here.
Why should I contact my MP?
Your MP has a duty to represent you as their constituent and a letter from your MP will have more weight than individuals writing to the Secretary of State directly.
Personalised letters to your MP detailing your own experience can help your MP understand your concerns and convince them to support you. It’s therefore important to include details about how you and your tenants have been affected by the coronavirus outbreak and any actions you have taken to support your tenants.
You can also seek to speak to your MP directly through their regular constituency surgery – contact your constituency office for details. These meetings are likely to be virtual due to coronavirus restrictions.
Do you have a letter template I can use?
Personalised letters have the most impact on politicians because individual stories and experiences matter. It’s essential to give your MP examples of how the policy has had an impact on your and/or your tenants and why you believe it’s important to take action.
We’ve developed a lobbying tool so you can write to your MP alongside some tips to help you craft a compelling message.
What else can I do?
We’ve heard from a number of members who are making extra effort to support their tenants during this challenging time, whether that’s by proactively contacting tenants to offer flexibility with rent payments, delivering essentials to vulnerable tenants or even arranging an online cook-along for tenants and providing them with ingredients.
If you’ve got an example of support which you’d like to share with us, you can do so below.
Share your story
Your experiences during the pandemic can be used to support landlords in a number of ways. We would like to keep in touch with you about this and our campaigns teams may need to contact you to gain permission to use your story in campaign material. To ensure we can do this the share your story option is only available after registering a free account on the NRLA website.