Following on from the articles written by my colleagues Renters Rights Act 2025: Part 1: Abolition of Section 21 Notices and Renters Rights Act 2025: Part 2: Grounds for possession I now look at the process for obtaining possession of a property let under an assured tenancy after the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 comes into force.
The Notice
Requests for possession should (I don’t have scope here for the exceptions) begin with the service of a notice under S8 of the Housing Act 1988, using Form 3 (or one to substantially the same effect) and setting out the grounds to be relied upon.
The grounds are all listed at Schedule 2 of the Housing Act 1988 (as amended by the Renters Rights Act 2025) and are the only reasons that can be used to obtain possession.
The period of notice differs for each ground, and the date after which a possession application may be issued should be after adequate notice (including time to serve the form) has been given.
There are conditions which landlords must comply with to be able to serve a valid notice – such will be familiar to landlords who have used the S21 process.
In due course this will include registration on the landlord’s portal and registration with the Ombudsman Scheme.
Proceedings
Once a valid notice has been served and has expired then a claim must be issued at the appropriate County Court using forms N5 and N119.
The additional supporting evidence which will be needed, will vary depending upon which ground is relied on.
Some claims, e.g rent arrears, may be issued on line.
The evidence should be obtained and checked prior to issue of the notice as there are penalties (civil and criminal) for relying on a ground that the landlord knows, or should know, cannot be obtained.
Further, the dismissal of the possession application may lead to an order for the landlord to pay the tenant’s costs.
Once issued, the court office will list the application for an attended hearing – at which point the judge will consider the application and may make an order. The first hearing may only be for a short period, meaning the matter maybe adjourned if there are substantial issues the judge needs to consider, or further documents or evidence are required to enable them to be able to deal with the matter properly.
Successfully Navigating Section 8
We suggest that landlords ensure they carefully document any matters that may lead to the need to serve a notice and take care to ensure that all regulatory requirements and timescales have been complied with before a notice is prepared.
All documents and evidence to support the application should be properly served on the court and the tenant prior to the first hearing.
Given the severity of the fines introduced by the Renters Rights Act 2025, landlords are advised to obtain independent legal advice prior to the drafting of any notice.
If this is something that you need advice for then please contact our Property Litigation team who are here to help you.