Sim
said: “There is no consistency in the eviction
process and it is archaically slow. It can take
up to three months to gain a court eviction order.
Judges
seem to review cases on a random basis and opinions
differ from judge to judge. There is confusion amongst
judges and magistrates on the terms in which eviction
notices can be granted.”
David
Absalom, a leading property expert who provides
advice and training to landlords and agents, supports
Legal 4 Landlords’ call for change. David
said: “Some judges are poorly trained in eviction
notices. Others are even playing the system. For
example, when a tenant asks for extra time the judge
sets a hearing for six weeks time – giving
the troublesome tenant longer time in the property
at the expense of the landlord. Even
if the judge is in the wrong, landlords find it
difficult to fight their case in court. Who is going
to argue with a judge even if he is spouting erroneous
law?”
Under
the Housing Act 1988, a landlord who has a shorthold
tenancy agreement has a legal right to get their
property back at the end of the tenancy using a
section 21 notice. A section 8 notice is used where
a tenant has broken part of their tenancy agreement.
The most common reason is non-payment of rent, but
there are 17 grounds in which a section 8 notice
can be used. The court will require the landlord
is able to show adequate evidence of the breach
before it will award possession and /or a money
judgment.*
Legal
4 Landlords have found some judges have an ill informed
view that you cannot enforce a section 8 notice
until the section 21 has expired.
Sim
added: “Around five per cent of tenants
we evict leave the property damaged and full
of rubbish. We’ve entered properties
with human excrement smeared over the walls,
rooms littered with used needles and in one
case a tenant had removed all the floorboards
in the upstairs of the property and laid the
carpet back down so the landlord fell through
the floor, sustaining serious injuries. Speeding
up the eviction process would limit the danger
to both landlords and people in neighbouring
properties.” |
|
This
is not just a problem for private landlords; social
housing landlords are also suffering from the slow
court eviction process. A housing association in
Manchester, Irwell Valley, announced this week it
took two months to gain a magistrates’ eviction
order for a problem tenant, by which time the house
had been vandalised and stripped of anything of
value. Irwell Valley has also called upon the government
to speed up the process and provide more powers
to landlords to evict problem tenants.
Frustration and a sense of injustice can lead to
desperate landlords talking the law into their own
hands as rent arrears reach an all time high. In
April, unpaid rent totalled £284 million across
the UK, with 11.8 per cent of all UK rent unpaid
or late by the end of the month. This is an increase
from the £224 million unpaid in March.
The
trend is being highlighted as a landlord in North
Yorkshire used ten skips to block access to his
£1million farmhouse to stop tenants leaving.
Simon Everingham claims he is owed £15,000
in rent, legal fees and interest payments by his
tenants.
Sim
Sekhon, director of eviction specialists, Legal
4 Landlords, said: “This case highlights the
frustration faced by landlords on a daily basis.
I see examples all the time, of landlords who are
driven to despair by tenants who have failed to
pay the rent agreed. Landlords should act as soon
as rent falls into arrears. If the rent runs up,
then in many cases, eviction is the only answer.
Whilst landlords should not tolerate tenants who
refuse to pay rent, they should never take the law
into their own hands. A process must be followed
in every case including a notice given to terminate
the tenancy and all paperwork must be in order.
Speak to an expert who will deal with the whole
process on your behalf.
Recent
research by the National Landlords Association found
52 per cent of landlords have reported rent arrears
in the past 12 months. The survey also found that
the average late paying tenant owed £730 in
late rental payments.
Legal
for Landlords is the comprehensive service provider
for landlords, letting agents and tenants. The business
has 22 offices across the UK. Log onto www.legal4landlords.com
for more information. Legal 4 Landlords is the UK's
largest specialists in tenant evictions, with more
than 30 years experience in evicting tenants across
England, Scotland and Wales.
*
www.landlordadvice.co.uk/html/section_8.html
www.propertyinvestmentproject.co.uk/blog/section-21-notice-of-possession-order-form
