Tenant protections: an update on the latest government guidance

While the repercussions of COVID-19 continue to be explored, it’s clear almost every industry in the UK has been significantly impacted. The government has introduced legislation and advice on all areas of our life, from work arrangements to travel restrictions and much-needed financial aid.

This support includes assistance for renters who may not be able to keep up with payments, with evictions being fully suspended in March as part of the government’s emergency coronavirus legislation, the Coronavirus Bill. Full details of this can be found on our previous blog here.

Ministers have since been under pressure to not only extend this but to also offer legal protection to tenants for when the ban ends.

As a result, millions of renters across England and Wales have now received even greater protection after the government extended the suspension of new evictions until 23 August, taking the postponement to more than five months.

What’s new?

The most recent government guidelines, which were announced in early June, build on the radical package of measures announced back in March and are aimed at protecting both renters and landlords affected by coronavirus. The new guidance includes:

• The introduction of emergency legislation so landlords won’t be able to start proceedings to evict tenants for at least three-months – this will now remain in place until at least September
• Further extending mortgage payment holdings to include landlords whose tenants are experiencing financial difficulties due to the pandemic
• Delivering £180 million in Discretionary Housing Payments to councils across the country to support renters with housing costs in the private and social rented sectors
• Extended advice which helps landlords and tenants to work together to resolve issues at the earliest opportunity

Who is eligible for the new extension?

The further two-month extension came into force on 25 June, and ensured there was no gap between the existing ban and the extension, and also applies to home-owners, commercial and leasehold agreements.

This protection covers most tenants in the private and social rented sectors in England and Wales, all grounds of evictions, and possession of tenancies in the Rent Act 1977, the Housing Act 1985, the Housing Act 1996 and the Housing Act 1988.

What next?

Over the coming weeks, the government is taking careful steps to ease lockdown measures, alongside decisive steps already taken to unlock the housing market so people can move if they need to.

While the government is taking unprecedented action to protect tenants and landlords during these times, the ultimate ambition is to transition out of these measures at the end of August. This will allow the market to move to a more efficient way of operating and while ensuring people have appropriate access to justice.