Section 8 Notices – Time to Prepare!
Posted on in Property Litigation
The Renters’ Rights Act is here, with Phase 1 coming into effect for private landlords from 1 May 2026. The Act brings huge changes to the private rental sector, including the abolition of the well-known Section 21 notice. But what will take its place? How will landlords be commencing the possession process after 1 May 2026?
In short, landlords will need to get used to the service of notices under Section 8 of the Housing Act 1988. Whereas Section 21 has often been labelled (usually incorrectly) as being a ‘no fault’ possession notice, a Section 8 notice requires a landlord to state a reason why they are seeking possession, based on one or more of the ‘grounds for possession’, as set out in Schedule 2 of the Housing Act 1988.
Some of the grounds of possession a landlord can rely on are mandatory grounds (and those include cases where there are high rent arrears, and also new grounds – where a landlord wants to sell and a much improved own/family occupation ground) and discretionary grounds (such as cases involving lower level of rent arrears, tenancy breaches or anti-social behaviour). Each ground will then require a period of notice to be given to the tenant to remedy the situation, before proceedings can be commenced, and these time periods differ.
Landlords should, however, note that the Section 8 notice is not new. Landlords who operate assured tenancies (typically housing association landlords) have used Section 8 as the means of commencing the possession process against their tenants for over 30 years, and in recent years, private sector landlords who have been unable to serve a Section 21 notice because of difficulties with the tenancy papers have also had to get to grips with the Section 8 process.
What this history has established is a sizeable body of case law on the operation of these notices and on the possession process that then follows. That case law has demonstrated the importance of getting these notices right, of the need to very carefully consider the position before serving notice. In some situations, it may be possible to seek to introduce additional grounds for possession into a possession claim, but that is not always a simple process, and it can open a landlord up to further costs and delay.
The headline for landlords is that serving notice will be a more involved process. Preparation is key.
How Tozers can help
Watch this space for future insights we will be producing, which examine the possession grounds in more detail.