KB LAW SOLICITORS

A Section 21 eviction notice allows a landlord to repossess their property and doesn’t require the tenant to have breached their tenancy agreement. It is also known as a ‘no fault’ eviction notice.

 

To regain possession of a property where you are evicting an existing tenant without alleging that they have broken the terms of the tenancy

 

• the tenancy must be an assured shorthold tenancy (AST)

• if a deposit has been paid by the tenant(s), the landlord must have protected the deposit in accordance with statutory requirements and served the prescribed information to the tenant

• in the case of an AST created on or after 1 October 2015 the landlord will have to have complied with the provisions of that act and that the landlord must:

  •  gas safety certificate

  • energy performance certificate

  • ‘How to rent: the checklist for renting in England’

  • use Form 6A

  • give you at least 2 months’ notice

 

Form 6A states that a section 21 notice cannot be used where:

• The tenant has resided in the property for less than four months.

• The landlord is prevented from retaliatory eviction under section 33 of the DA 2015.

• The landlord has not complied with the requirements under the Regulations

• The landlord has not protected the tenant's deposit under a Tenancy Deposit Scheme

• The property requires a licence but is unlicensed.

 

However, from 1 October 2018, the rules will apply to any AST (except for the requirement for the landlord to provide prescribed information about the rights and responsibilities of the landlord and tenant under the AST (DA 2015))

 

The landlord may not need to use Form 6A if the tenancy began before 1 October 2015 but the landlord must still give the tenant at least 2 months' written notice.

 

Provided that these requirements are met, the landlord can serve on the tenants a notice compliant with section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 and the Deregulations Act 2015 (where appropriate) with a minimum of two months’ notice which cannot expire earlier than the end date of any written tenancy agreement.
 

After the expiry of the notice, the landlord may issue a claim by submitting the form to the court for the possession of the property.

Two weeks after the court has issued the claim and served the papers on the tenant, the landlord may make a written request to the court for a possession order unless if the claim is defended by the Tenant or the Court rejects the claim for any legal or technical reasons.  If the court accepts that the case is proved, they will order the tenant to leave the property by a specified date. There will be no court hearing.

If the tenant fails to leave by the specified date, the landlord may issue a warrant for the County Court Bailiff to enforce the or if permitted may instruct the High Court Bailiff to transfer the case up to the High Court for a Writ to enforce the order.

Our Fees

Issuing a Section-21 Notice £200 plus VAT & Disbursements.
Assessing the file, advice, drafting and serving notice by recorded post on tenant/s. If you have obtained our initial consultation at the fixed fee, this service is included in the initial consultation fees.

 

Filing Possession Claim pursuant to Section-21 notice £600.00 plus VAT & Disbursements

 Where a valid Section 21 Notice has been served and the landlord has complied with all the statutory requirements relating to the tenancy, it is normally possible to obtain an Order for Possession without a Court hearing taking place. However, if the tenant satisfies the court that there is a defence, or the Judge on review of the papers wishes for both parties to attend a Court hearing, the costs after this process are not limited to the costs detailed above. If the matter is defended, this will be charged at an hourly rate. We will seek your instructions before incurring costs which fall outside the fixed fee scheme.

 

This includes our costs in preparing your Claim, filing it at Court and liaising with the Court and any third parties as necessary but excludes any Court fees, attendance at Court, disbursements, or replies to defence to be filed.
 

County Court Bailiff instructions for arranging an eviction is £180.00 plus VAT & Disbursements. 

This includes our fees in applying for a Warrant for Eviction and liaising with the Court bailiff but excludes Writ to transfer the Claim to the High Court for enforcement by a High Court Sheriff.

 

If you win

If your possession claim succeeds, the Court will usually order your tenant to pay a fixed costs fee set out under the Civil Procedure Rules. This fixed cost can change from time to time but regardless of what you have actually spent, the court will most likely award much less.

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If you lose

You’re likely to be ordered to pay the tenant’s legal costs, if any.

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Please note, the above fixed fees are on the basis of straightforward, undefended claims. If complications arise (which sometimes leads to the claim being defended) then correspondence, advice or negotiations outside the standard procedures will be charged at an hourly rate. 

 

If the tenant satisfies the court that there is a defence, or the Judge on review of the papers wishes for both parties to attend a Court hearing, the costs after this process are not limited to the costs detailed above. If the matter is defended, this will be charged at an hourly rate. We will seek your instructions before incurring costs which fall outside the fixed fee scheme.

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