Blog
Expert guides on tenant rights, rent increases, and the Section 13 process in England.
Index-linked or CPI rent review clause after 1 May 2026: the tenant refusal walkthrough
Plenty of older tenancy agreements contain a clause that lets the landlord raise the rent automatically each year by inflation, often pegged to CPI or RPI. Since 1 May 2026 those clauses can no longer be used: every rent increase on a tenancy now has to go through the statutory Section 13 process, and a contractual review clause cannot override it. This walkthrough explains why an index-linked uplift is no longer enforceable, how to spot when a landlord is trying to apply one anyway, and gives you a template letter to refuse it calmly and correctly.
Form 4A served on 1 May 2026: the tenant validity-check playbook for the new prescribed rent increase notice
From 1 May 2026, every Section 13 rent increase notice must be on Form 4A — the new prescribed form. The old Form 4 is invalid. Form 4A has 9 mandatory fields, prescribed wording on tenant rights, and a fixed 2-month minimum notice period regardless of payment frequency. Any defect = the notice is invalid and the rent doesn't increase. This is the tenant playbook with a 9-field validity check, three response templates, and the tribunal route.
Form 4 served 30 April vs Form 4A served 1 May 2026: which regime applies to you (the tenant cliff-edge guide)
The serving date — not the date typed on the form — decides which regime applies to your rent increase notice. Worked examples for the 30 April–1 May 2026 cliff edge, three response templates.
Section 13 and a returning former joint tenant: does the notice still bind everyone?
A previously departed joint tenant moves back in while a Section 13 is live. Is the notice still valid? Four sub-scenarios, what each means for the increase, and what the tenant does in the first 48 hours.
Form 4 vs Form 4A: the tenant walkthrough for the 1 May 2026 transition fortnight
In the seven days either side of 1 May 2026 the Section 13 regime switches from Form 4 to Form 4A. The date of service decides which rules apply - and the tribunal risk is very different between the two. Tenant walkthrough.
Section 13 notice with a wrong date: the three defects tenants can spot in two minutes
Three dates appear on every Section 13 rent increase notice. Get any one of them wrong and the notice can be invalid. Two minutes with a calendar and your tenancy agreement is all it takes to check.
Section 13 notice with wrong joint tenant names: what invalidates it and what doesn't
Names on a Section 13 rent increase notice matter. One missing joint tenant, one wrong name, one stale address and the whole notice can be invalid. Here is the five-pattern walkthrough for UK tenants.
Form 4A errors tenants can use to invalidate a rent increase (from 1 May 2026)
From 1 May 2026, every landlord in England serving a rent increase under Section 13 must use Form 4A. Not Form 4 — that's the old version, which applies to notices served before 1 May. Not an email. Not a letter on headed paper. Not a polit
The GBP 47 tribunal fee from 1 May 2026: the decision tool for tenants
On 23 March 2026, the Ministry of Justice confirmed the fee for applying to a rent tribunal: GBP 47. From 1 May 2026, any tenant in England facing a Section 13 rent increase can challenge it for that single flat fee. There is no additional
Section 13 notice with the wrong tenancy type: when it's a knockout defect (and when it isn't)
If you've just opened a Section 13 notice and something about it feels off — the tenancy it describes doesn't match the one you actually have — trust that instinct. Tenancy type sits at the very heart of Section 13. Get it wrong, and the no