Form 4A receipt nudge templates: three plain-text emails for the first business week of the Renters' Rights Act (May 2026)

It is the first business day after the Renters' Rights Act 2025 took effect. Maybe your landlord mentioned a rent increase on the phone last week. Maybe an estate agent emailed a "new rent proposal" without attaching a proper notice. Maybe you got a vague PDF that says "rent increase" at the top but is not a Form 4A. Or maybe you have heard nothing — but you know one is coming.

This is the gap-week. Until a properly-served Form 4A lands, no rent increase has legal force. You are still on the existing rent. The next move is yours, and the calmest move is a polite, well-drafted email that converts the vague signal into either a properly-served Form 4A you can challenge, or written confirmation that no increase is being pursued.

This post gives you three plain-text email templates for that exact situation. Copy, adapt, send.

Why Form 4A matters

Under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (in force from 1 May 2026), Form 4A is the only legally valid route to raise rent on an assured periodic tenancy in England. Section 13 of the Housing Act 1988, as amended by the Act, makes Form 4A the prescribed notice. No Form 4A, no rent increase. It does not matter what your tenancy agreement says about rent reviews — under RRA 2025, rent review clauses in existing tenancy agreements no longer override the Form 4A regime.

Three things have to be true for a rent increase to bind you:

1. The notice is on Form 4A (the prescribed form, available from GOV.UK)
2. It gives at least two months before the new rent takes effect
3. It has been properly served (first-class post, hand delivery, or process server, per government guidance)

A WhatsApp message, a verbal mention, an estate agent email, or a PDF on the landlord's letterhead that does not match Form 4A — none of these meet the legal test. They are signals, not notices.

[!info] No Form 4A means no increase Until a Form 4A is properly served, you continue paying the existing rent. There is no statutory penalty on the landlord for using the wrong form - but the consequence is that any "rent increase" they have signalled simply has no legal effect. You cannot be evicted for not paying an increase that has never been legally proposed.

The right tone for the templates

These are not adversarial messages. They are calm, courteous, and procedurally correct. Most landlords are not trying to do anything dodgy — they may genuinely not know about the new prescribed-form requirement, or their agent may have used a generic template. A polite nudge usually produces one of two outcomes:

• The landlord serves a proper Form 4A within a week or two (good — now you can review and challenge if needed)
• The landlord quietly drops the idea (also good — you stay on the existing rent)

Either way, you have a paper trail. That paper trail matters if anything escalates later.

Template A — Acknowledge and request the prescribed form

Use this when: you have received a verbal mention, an informal email, or a PDF that is not Form 4A.

Send within: 3-7 days of receiving the signal. Quick acknowledgement is more professional than silence.

Subject: Rent increase - request for prescribed Form 4A

Dear [Landlord / Agent name],

Thank you for letting me know about your intention to propose a rent
increase. I appreciate the early communication.

So that I can review the proposed increase properly under the Renters'
Rights Act 2025, please could you serve me with the prescribed Form 4A
notice. From 1 May 2026, Form 4A is the required notice for any rent
increase on an assured periodic tenancy under section 13 of the Housing
Act 1988 (as amended). The form is published by GOV.UK and includes
the proposed rent, the date the increase would take effect (which must
be at least two months after service), and the standard tenant
information.

Once the Form 4A is served I will review it and respond within the
relevant period.

In the meantime, the current rent of £[current amount] continues as
agreed in the tenancy.

Thank you,
[Your name]
[Your address - the tenancy address]
[Date]

What this template does:

• Acknowledges the landlord politely (no friction)
• States the legal position factually (no accusation)
• Closes the loop on the existing rent (no ambiguity)
• Creates a paper trail dated to the day you received the informal signal

Ninety per cent of cases stop here. Either Form 4A arrives, or it doesn't.

Template B — Gentle chase (week 1-2)

Use this when: a week has passed since Template A and no Form 4A has arrived.

Send within: 7-10 working days after Template A.

Subject: Following up - rent increase / Form 4A

Dear [Landlord / Agent name],

I am following up on my email of [date of Template A] regarding the
rent increase you mentioned.

To plan my finances for the next quarter, please could you confirm
by [date - 7 working days from this email] whether you intend to
serve a Form 4A notice. If a notice is not being served, I will
continue at the current rent of £[current amount].

If a Form 4A is being prepared, please share the proposed effective
date so I can plan my response timeline.

Thank you,
[Your name]
[Your address]
[Date]

What this template does:

• Sets a soft deadline (7 working days) without being aggressive
• Frames the request as practical financial planning — landlord cannot reasonably object
• Reaffirms the legal position that no rent increase applies until Form 4A is served
• Offers two clean outcomes: serve the form, or confirm there is no increase

If the landlord responds with "we are dropping it", save that email. That is now your written confirmation.

Template C — Formal clarification (week 3+)

Use this when: two emails have gone unanswered and you are now three or more weeks from the original signal.

Send within: 14-21 days after Template A.

Subject: Rent position - formal clarification

Dear [Landlord / Agent name],

I have not received a response to my emails of [date of Template A]
and [date of Template B] regarding the rent increase you mentioned.

For clarity:

- My tenancy continues at the current rent of £[current amount].
- No Form 4A notice has been served. Under section 13 of the Housing
  Act 1988 (as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025), Form 4A is
  the only valid route to raise rent on this tenancy from 1 May 2026.
  Rent review clauses in the tenancy agreement no longer override this.
- Until and unless a Form 4A is properly served (first-class post,
  hand delivery, or process server), I will continue paying the
  current rent on the usual rent payment date.

If you intend to proceed with a rent increase, please serve a Form 4A
in the prescribed way. If you do not intend to proceed, please confirm
in writing by [date - 14 working days] so the matter is closed.

Thank you,
[Your name]
[Your address]
[Date]

What this template does:

• Documents the chase history clearly
• States the legal position once, factually, with the statutory reference
• Offers the landlord two clean exits: serve the form, or confirm withdrawal
• Builds a paper trail that protects you if the landlord later attempts informal pressure or non-prescribed enforcement

What the templates protect you from

A few common landlord moves these templates pre-empt:

"You agreed to it on the phone." No. Section 13 requires written notice on Form 4A. A phone conversation does not bind you to a rent increase, regardless of whether you said "okay" in the moment.

"It is in your tenancy agreement." Pre-1 May 2026, some tenancy agreements had rent review clauses that allowed annual increases by formula. Under RRA 2025, those clauses no longer override the Form 4A regime for assured periodic tenancies. The clause may still be referenced by the landlord, but the only legally enforceable route is Form 4A.

"Pay the new rent or we will issue a Section 8." Form 4A defects do not give grounds for a Section 8 possession claim. Continuing to pay the existing rent (which is what you owe under your tenancy) is not arrears. If a Section 8 notice does land, the prior paper trail of these templates is direct evidence of your good-faith engagement.

"The new rent starts next month and we will adjust your standing order." Your standing order is yours to control. The bank cannot adjust it without your authorisation. Keep paying the existing rent on the existing date.

What if the landlord then serves a proper Form 4A?

If the landlord responds to Template A or B by sending a proper Form 4A, the situation switches into the standard Form 4A response window:

• You have at least two months before the new rent takes effect
• You can challenge it via the First-tier Tribunal Property Chamber (£47 fee, application before the effective date)
• The tribunal under RRA 2025 cannot set rent higher than proposed, and cannot backdate the decision

A separate post on this site walks through the tribunal application end-to-end. The polite nudge templates above simply get you to a properly-served notice — the rest of the playbook then applies.

What if no Form 4A ever arrives?

Then nothing happens. Your tenancy continues at the existing rent. The "rent increase" was never legally proposed, so it never legally takes effect.

Some tenants worry that a non-response from the landlord is itself a problem. It is not. Silence is the second-best outcome (Form 4A actually being served is first, because at least then you have something concrete to review and challenge if needed).

[!success] The strategic value of the paper trail Even if the landlord never serves Form 4A, the three emails you have sent are a clean, dated, professional record that you engaged in good faith and the landlord did not. If the landlord attempts to retaliate later (for example with a Section 8 notice on weak grounds), that paper trail substantially helps your defence.

A note on Section 13 timing under RRA 2025

A few quick reminders worth having in mind while you draft these emails:

• Rent can only be raised once in any 12-month period
• The minimum notice period is two months across all rent payment frequencies (under RRA 2025, this is uniform — pre-RRA it varied)
• The rent cannot be raised in the first 12 months of a new tenancy
• The proposed new rent must take effect on a usual rent payment date

If your landlord has tried to raise the rent within 12 months of the last increase, with less than two months' notice, in the first year of the tenancy, or on a non-payment-date, the proposed Form 4A is procedurally invalid before you even look at the figure.

Common questions to expect

If the landlord pushes back on your Template A, expect one of:

• "I do not need to use Form 4A — your tenancy says I can put up the rent annually." (Wrong post-1 May 2026 for assured periodic tenancies.)
• "I sent you a letter — that is the same thing." (No, the prescribed form is specifically Form 4A.)
• "I will serve it next week." (Fine — Template C is for if they don't.)
• "Are you refusing the increase?" (You are not refusing anything. You are asking for the prescribed form before responding.)

In each case, Template B or C handles it without escalation.