How to serve a notice
Introduction
There are many different types of notice that a landlord may need to serve depending on their tenancy. These notices will each have their own specific requirements. Some of these requirements may even vary depending on whether you serve the notice to tenants in England or Wales.
However, whether it is a section 21 notice or a notice to quit, then there are certain practices that you should follow as a landlord if you want to ensure the notice is served correctly on a residential tenancy.
This short guide is designed to help you understand the best practices that you will need to follow to ensure you serve a notice correctly.
Renters’ Rights Bill
The Renters' Rights Bill is expected to come into force in summer 2025, making the most significant changes to the private rented sector in over 30 years.
Amongst other things, the Bill will -
• Abolish Section 21;
• Change the type of tenancy you can offer;
• Introduce a new Decent Homes Standard to the PRS;
• Change advertising practices; and
• Significantly strengthen local authority enforcement powers.
The advice and resources on this page will be outdated once the Bill comes into force. The NRLA is currently preparing a suite of replacement guides and documents to help you manage the transition smoothly.
For further information on the passage of the Bill and its details, please see our dedicated campaigns hub
Choosing your method of service
Service on the tenant
Your notice can always be served by hand to the individual tenant or tenants who live in the property. This is the best method if possible as it gives you the opportunity to have your tenants confirm they have received the notice by signing and dating the document.
Service to the property
If it is not possible to get the tenant to sign for the document, then the best method is to deliver the notice to the property yourself. As long as you have a professionally drafted tenancy agreement then it should contain a clause that specifies the notice will be considered served if it is delivered to the property.
Service by post to the property
A well-drafted tenancy agreement will also contain similar provisions allowing for notices to be served by posting the notice to the property. The key thing to remember with this is that the notice must reach the property for service to be affected. If you post the notice by recorded/signed for delivery then the tenant may refuse to sign for it.
Can my agent serve a notice for me?
The rest of this content requires you to register on the NRLA site. It contains information on whether your agent can serve a notice, how many notices you should serve, how to evidence you have served the notice and when a notice is considered to have been served on the tenant.