{"id":715605,"date":"2026-01-23T15:35:12","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T15:35:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/715605\/"},"modified":"2026-01-23T15:35:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T15:35:12","slug":"new-renting-rules-must-be-enforced-by-london-borough-councils-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/715605\/","title":{"rendered":"New renting rules ‘must be enforced’ by London borough councils"},"content":{"rendered":"

From May laws the new Renters\u2019 Rights Act (RRA) will come into force, ending Section 21 \u2018no fault\u2019 evictions and fixed-term contracts, reports Kumail Jaffer, Local Democracy Reporter<\/strong><\/p>\n

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London\u2019s 2.7million private renters will only benefit from new legislation boosting their rights if councils properly enforce the law, the London Assembly has been told.<\/p>\n

From 1st May, laws contained within the government\u2019s new Renters\u2019 Rights Act (RRA) will come into force, including ending Section 21 \u2018no fault\u2019 evictions and fixed-term contracts and only allowing one rent rise per year.<\/p>\n

In future years, the government will extend Awaab\u2019s Law to private rentals \u2013 forcing landlords to act fast when homes are unsafe \u2013 as well as imposing a decent homes standard to ensure landlords keep properties safe, warm and in good repair.<\/p>\n

The changes, which will impact eleven million renters in England \u2013 including 2.7million in London \u2013 have been cautiously welcomed by organisations representing both tenants and landlords, though many have warned about the challenges regarding its implementation.<\/p>\n

Niamh Evans, policy officer at the Renters\u2019 Reform Coalition, told the London Assembly housing committee that the legislation represented \u201cthe most significant improvement to renter protections in more than a generation\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will empower renters through lessening the fear that they may be evicted after asking for a repair, that they might be evicted as a retaliation, for example,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Evans said renters in London will particularly benefit from increased protections, seeing as the capital\u2019s boroughs accounted for seven of the ten local authorities with the highest rate of private landlord claims.<\/p>\n

The RRA also bans \u2018bidding wars\u2019 between potential tenants \u2013 currently, one in four London renters have to participate in such a process for the right to rent a property.<\/p>\n

However, the London Assembly heard how the benefits of the RRA will only be realised if local authorities have the resources, knowledge and will to enforce it against wayward landlords.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe act will only be as effective as how it is enforced, and that is our primary concern,\u201d Evans continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the three-year period to 2024, over a third of councils didn\u2019t prosecute a single landlord. In the last three years, only one landlord in London was prosecuted for an illegal eviction.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have our work cut out in boosting capacity \u2013 that is our primary concern \u2013 and we would like councils to look at various opportunities to boost their enforcement by expanding selective licensing, which would allow them to look at the whole private rented sector instead of just HMOs.<\/p>\n

\u201cSelective licensing will remain a really important tool for councils, because it adds a stable source of funding and powers to inspect properties.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paul Williams, a national organiser at the ACORN union, which advocates for tenants, said current enforcement was \u201cslacking\u201d.<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cThere are huge problems with how enforcement is currently carried out across the city \u2013 unless there is a strategy from City Hall and increased funding for local authorities, the concern will continue.<\/p>\n

\u201cLocal authorities seem completely unprepared on how to deal with illegal evictions or enforcing the law as it stands at all. There\u2019s a huge discrepancy [within London] \u2013 some local authorities do not use enforcement powers at all.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere needs to be a strategy from City Hall on how boroughs can use these powers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alva Gotby from the London Renters Union added: \u201cIf local authorities don\u2019t have the means or will to enforce the Act, we could see a two tier system where the most vulnerable residents \u2013 students, disabled people, those who don\u2019t speak English as a first language \u2013 are pushed into unregulated parts of the private rented sector.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to make sure local authority officers have the correct training to implement the law.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the hearing, council representatives from Tower Hamlets, Ealing, and Kensington and Chelsea all raised issues around a shortfall of funding and staffing when it came to implementing the changes.<\/p>\n

Ben Beadle, chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), suggested increased funding for the courts \u2013 who will likely need to deal with a deluge of cases around evictions as well as other disputes between landlords and tenants \u2013 will be needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome 60% of landlords have some knowledge of what is going on \u2013 there will be landlords out there who do need reaching out to, to ensure they comply to this seismic shift,\u201d he told the London Assembly.<\/p>\n

\u201cLandlords have got to get a grip to make sure these reforms are a success. The reforms will hopefully bring security for renters and certainty for landlords. But we need greater investment in the courts system, which is on its knees.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan also faced calls to take the lead in ensuring both tenants and landlords are well informed about the changes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe mayor plays a vital role in creating the accountability for boroughs to implement and spread awareness of the RRA,\u201d Evans said, while Beadle called on City Hall to commit to an annual report to analyse whether the reforms are proving successful in the capital.<\/p>\n

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