The right of a landlord in the UK to repossess a property in legitimate circumstances need to be protected if the sector is to give its backing to longer tenancies being available, it is suggested.
The Government has indicated that it is in favour of longer tenancies becoming the norm in the private rented sector but there has been some resistance from landlords who are concerned that it may prevent them being able to get their property back.
The Residential Landlords Association has pointed out that a recent court case in which a landlord’s attempt to regain their property was deemed invalid due to a dispute over a gas safety certificate shows why there are concerns.
In this case, after initially being granted an order to repossess the property using Section 21 powers, the tenant successfully appealed on the grounds that they were not provided with a gas safety certificate prior to moving in.
Despite the landlord making this available once the tenancy had begun, the Court ruled that their Section 21 powers were invalid, referring to a previous similar case in which the certificate was made available less than two weeks after the tenant moved in.
The judge in the appeal said that if the gas safety certificate was not served on the tenant before they took up occupation then a Section 21 notice could not be relied on to regain possession, and the situation could not be resolved by serving one after the moving in date.
However, the RLA is supporting the landlord, Trecarrell House Limited, at the Court of Appeal, on the basis that so long as the gas safety certificate is provided before the Section 21 notice is served, then it is valid.
It argues that the case could breach a landlord’s rights under European Convention on Human Rights on the basis that it deprives them of their possessions.
‘Protecting the rights of landlords to repossess properties in legitimate circumstances is key to providing the confidence the sector needs to offer longer tenancies,’ said David Smith, Policy Director for the RLA.
‘The landlord in this case was not seeking to shirk their responsibilities and provided the certificates that were needed. We will fight to ensure that if nothing else, logic prevails,’ he added.
