Rent repayment orders

Introduction

First introduced in 2004, rent repayment orders (RRO) were an additional measure used to penalise landlords for HMO licensing offences. This was only available in very limited circumstances though. Tenants, for example, could only take action once the landlord had been convicted of the criminal offence of operating an HMO without a licence, or that the relevant local authority had secured a rent repayment order for Housing Benefit payments.

In practice, this limited the potential number of rent repayment orders as the tenants had to rely on the local authority to take action before they could seek compensation, and were also limited to a maximum of the previous 12 month's rent prior to making the order, preventing tenants who had moved out prior to conviction from applying.

The Housing and Planning Act 2016 has significantly increased the scope for rent repayment orders, and these changes will form the bulk of this guide. 

Renters’ Rights Act

The Renters' Rights Bill, the most significant set of changes to the PRS in over 30 years, completed its passage through parliament on 27th October 2025 and is now the Renters' Rights Act.

The legislation doesn't apply to your tenancies yet though. The legislation will not come into force until 1 May 2026. From that date, the Act will:

• Abolish Section 21;
• Change the notice periods and grounds available for Section 8 notices;
• Change the type of tenancy you can offer;
• Ban rent in advance before the tenancy is signed;
• Only allow rent increases via a Section 13 notice;
• Change advertising practices; and 
• Significantly strengthen local authority enforcement powers.

The rest of the of the Renters' Rights Act, including the private rented database and the Decent Homes Standard, will follow at a later date.

The advice and resources on this page is currently accurate but will be outdated on 1 May 2026. 

The NRLA is currently preparing a suite of replacement guides and tenancy documents to help you manage the transition smoothly.

For further information on the Renters' Rights Act and its details, please see our dedicated Renters' Rights hub.

What are rent repayment orders?

Rent repayment orders are a means by which a tenant or local authority can seek to have up to 12 months of rent, Housing Benefit, or Universal Credit repaid. Usually this in addition to other fines. This method is available to the local authority or tenants, where they can prove beyond reasonable doubt that the landlord is guilty of one of the qualifying offences. It is limited to money paid by the body or person making the application.

Who can issue a rent repayment order?

The Residential Property Tribunal deals with applications for rent repayment orders.