Blog
Expert guides on tenant rights, rent increases, and the Section 13 process in England.
RRO for an unlicensed HMO under the new 24-month window: the tenant walkthrough (RRA, 2026)
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 doubled the rent repayment order maximum from 12 to 24 months. The tenant walkthrough on how to claim, with the evidence pack and the Form RRO1 process.
Your guarantor was released on 1 May 2026: the tenant walkthrough (RRA, 2026)
Most tenancy guarantors signed before 1 May 2026 were quietly released on that date. Most renters and most guarantors do not know. The tenant walkthrough that puts a stop to chasing letters.
Form 4A served during the 12-month rent-increase freeze: the tenant procedural-challenge walkthrough (RRA, May 2026)
Under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 a landlord cannot increase rent in the first 12 months of a new assured tenancy, and cannot increase rent more than once in any 12-month period thereafter. A Form 4A served inside that freeze window is invalid on its face - no need to involve the First-tier Tribunal, no need to argue market rent. A single procedural-challenge letter ends it. This walkthrough covers the 12-month rule, how to spot the freeze breach in three checks, and the one-letter response template.
Council tax under the Renters' Rights Act periodic-by-default regime: when does the bill move? The tenant walkthrough (May 2026)
Historically, a tenant on a statutory periodic tenancy who moved out before the notice end date stopped being liable for council tax the day they vacated - the empty-property charge fell on the landlord. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 has reversed that. Tenants are now liable for council tax until the end of the notice period they served, even if they leave the property earlier. This walkthrough covers the new rule, the timing maths, the leave-early scenario that catches tenants out, and how to evidence the vacate date if the council pushes back.
Successor tenancy after the death of a joint tenant under the Renters' Rights Act 2025: the surviving tenant's walkthrough (May 2026)
When a joint tenant dies, the law of survivorship takes over - the surviving joint tenant becomes the sole tenant automatically. No new tenancy, no Form 6A, no eviction. But landlords and letting agents routinely test this rule, asking the surviving tenant to "sign a new agreement" or hinting that they might need to leave. This walkthrough covers the survivorship rule, the four common landlord-dispute scenarios under the new Renters' Rights Act regime, and the two short letters that close those scenarios down.
Asking your landlord to take in a lodger or sub-let under the Renters' Rights Act: the tenant consent request walkthrough (RRA Day 9, May 2026)
A spare room earns nothing while it sits empty. A friend needs somewhere for three months. A second income would take pressure off a tight budget. Each of these is a reason a tenant might want to take in a lodger or arrange a short sub-let - and each requires, in most cases, the landlord's consent. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 has tightened the consent regime in some places (pets, most visibly) and left the lodger / sub-let rules broadly unchanged - but the escalation routes if a landlord behaves unreasonably are now significantly stronger. This walkthrough covers the two scenarios precisely, the clean consent-request letters (lodger and sub-let), what counts as reasonable refusal under the established framework, and the four-step escalation path to the Property Redress Scheme.
Joint tenancy break clause walkthrough under the Renters' Rights Act periodic-by-default regime: the tenant playbook (RRA Day 9, May 2026)
Joint tenancies are the trickiest corner of the new Renters' Rights Act regime. One housemate can serve a notice to quit and end the tenancy for everyone under the long-standing Hammersmith and Fulham LBC v Monk rule. Break clauses still appear in pre-1-May-2026 agreements but landlords can no longer use them. This walkthrough is the tenant playbook: the headline rules from 1 May 2026, the four common scenarios (all leaving together, one leaving with the rest staying, all leaving with shorter notice, pre-RRA tenant break clause cases), and the four templates - one per scenario - that handle each properly.
Disrepair to rent reduction: the tenant maths walkthrough under the Renters' Rights Act + Decent Homes Standard (RRA Day 9, May 2026)
Damp in the bedroom, heating off through January, mould the landlord keeps promising to look at - documented disrepair has a price tag, and under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 with the Decent Homes Standard now extended to the private rented sector, the maths are tidier than they have ever been. This walkthrough covers the two parallel routes (tribunal market-rent reduction under section 14 and a civil abatement claim under section 11), the percentage-band methodology used in practice (5-15% minor, 15-30% material, 30-50% major, 50-100% uninhabitable), three worked examples with real numbers, and the section 11 notice template that starts the clock.
Selective licensing breach as tenant leverage: the council enforcement walkthrough (RRA Day 8, May 2026)
Selective licensing is one of the quietest superpowers a private renter has, and most tenants do not know it exists. In dozens of council areas across England, every privately let property has to be licensed by the council. A landlord letting an unlicensed property faces a fine of up to GBP 30,000, a criminal offence, and now a rent repayment order of up to twelve months' rent under the expanded Renters' Rights Act regime. This walkthrough is the tenant-side playbook: confirming the scheme, checking the public register, an FOI template, the council enforcement route, and the parallel RRO claim - all from paperwork failure.
Harassment and quiet enjoyment: the tenant remedy walkthrough under the Renters' Rights Act (RRA Day 8, May 2026)
Changing locks. Withholding services. Late-night doorstep visits. Removing belongings. Each is a possible breach of the Protection from Eviction Act 1977 and the common-law covenant of quiet enjoyment, and the Renters' Rights Act 2025 has sharpened the financial consequences for landlords. This walkthrough is the tenant-side escalation ladder: contemporaneous diary, written cease-and-desist letter, council Tenancy Relations Officer, county court injunction, police complaint, and how to evidence each step. Includes a cease-and-desist letter template and a one-page evidence-gathering checklist.