Phill Gill, Director
As market leaders, we feel passionate about representing our industry sector and the clients we serve in every possible way. This means we’re no strangers to having difficult conversations or approaching challenges and problems in an innovative and forward-thinking way.
Given the huge importance and implications of this bill, it’s something we have been doing recently.
We have already been in dialogue with the Minister of Housing, Matthew Pennycook, about how an impending reform could negatively impact our clients. Further talks are planned, and we would welcome input or thoughts from any other stakeholders so that all views, not just our own, can be expressed to the minister.
Watch this space for further updates on how much traction we are getting on this vital topic. But, in real terms, what does this all actually mean?
Why Do We Offer Property Rental?
For anyone following the work we do here at PLG, you’ll be aware that we have always been very active in the property rental market.
Rentals are a tough proposition – they’re generally in short supply, the market moves fast and there’s usually a queue of tenants for any decent, available private accommodation.
Convincing estate agents and landlords to consider our clients compared to a more straightforward client tenancy agreement with someone else can be a huge challenge. We have to ‘sell’ the story, explain what we do, how we work, the situation our client finds themselves in. We achieve that by playing the long game, having built relationships over 20 years with estate agents and landlords up and down the country.
But for us, rentals are an essential part of our service offering. A large proportion of our property finding work is in seeking immediate solutions for clients who have suffered life-long catastrophic injuries as a result of an accident or clinical negligence that was not their fault.
Placing a client into suitable accommodation as soon as possible is therefore critical, and that usually means rental. Required therapies can start as soon as possible to promote expedited recovery, families are brought back together, providing a safe space following a traumatic event. These outcomes are so well recognised that they form a key basis of the Rehab Code, the voluntary code of conduct insurers sign up to in cases of personal injury where the imperative is to start rehab services as soon as possible.
On a more practical level, our clients often cannot be discharged from hospital because their home is not suitable for their changed needs. On many occasions, due to hospitals requiring beds, clients are discharged to wholly unsuitable accommodation such as hotels, medical facilities, care homes or even living rooms without access to bathing facilities.
The loss of independence, privacy and dignity can be overwhelming.
While a rental property may not be the ultimate solution – it’s a bridge to a forever home – it serves as a vital starting point. It also provides clients with valuable insights into what their future home will need to offer. For instance, they can evaluate layout considerations, accessibility features and how these align with their daily routines.
How Is Proposed Legislative Reform Going to Affect Us All?
So, why is this background useful? Well, the biggest reform to the UK’s rental landscape since the Housing Act of 1998 is on the way.
The Renters’ Reform Bill is proposed legislation designed to overhaul the private rental sector in England. It seeks to balance tenant security with landlord accountability, while simplifying legal processes and reducing informal or retaliatory evictions.
While the Bill is not yet enacted, it remains a highly relevant development for legal professionals acting on behalf of clients requiring suitable, secure, long-term accommodation, particularly those with disability, injury or litigation-related housing needs.
What Does the Renters’ Reform Bill Seek to Address?
For tenants, it’s largely positive. More rights, more control, more protection against unscrupulous private landlords. The main headlines are:
- Scrapping of no-fault evictions: landlords won’t be able to kick tenants out without valid cause. It means the end to ‘section 21’ notices, which allows a landlord to evict a tenant without good reason.
- A Property Portal: where landlord credentials can be checked to ensure they’re legit.
- An Ombudsman: to make it easier for tenants to complain about poor treatment from landlords.
- Allowance for pets: landlords won’t unreasonably be able to say no to a tenant having a pet.
- Landlords will no longer be able to demand multiple months’ rent in advance as a condition for securing a home.
- Ending of fixed-term tenancies.
For good landlords struggling to make a financial return on property, layering in more cost is likely to lead to an even greater exodus from the market than there is right now. It’s certainly something we’ve noticed over the past 12 months, which means valued rental properties are being lost in a sector that is already in short supply.
The consequence? Higher rental costs to tenants, of course — and that’s not good.
There are of course plenty of positives in there. So…
What’s the Real Issue?
Well, firstly, for us, not this one:
Landlords will no longer be able to demand multiple months’ rent in advance as a condition for securing a home.
This is a common tactic we’re aware of in our market – convincing landlords or estate agents to go with a recently injured client is often sweetened by an offer of a 12-month advanced payment of rent.
In 13 years of trading, this is something that we have never ever resorted to. There are many reasons why we don’t feel that this is necessary, mainly because if the tenancy is well reasoned and structured you just don’t need to have the risk of this level of funding tied up.
In simple terms, it is bad practice and not in the best interests of the client. We prefer instead, as mentioned, to invest our time in building relationships and educating agents and landlords so they learn and understand our proposition. That’s what persuades them to work with us.
For Us, the Most Contentious Point Is This One:
Ending of fixed-term tenancies: It is proposed that all tenancies will become rolling agreements (month-to-month) that tenants can get out of with two months’ notice. This replaces the use of Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs).
We believe that by abolishing fixed-term tenancies, providing security for the country’s most vulnerable tenants will evaporate.
Every day, we negotiate with landlords to undertake adaptations on rental properties. These can include creating wet rooms, widening doorways, levelling access points and even installing internal lifts.
Included within negotiations are reinstatement requirements to provide the landlord with peace of mind that they’ll get a property back that’s in better shape than the day it was first rented to our client. These adaptations are undertaken at our client’s expense, usually with interim funds secured by the client’s legal team during the litigation process.
Without this level of security, it will be a very brave litigator or Deputy who signs up to a short agreement when so much money is likely to be at risk.
But Here’s the Rub
As so much work and time goes into structuring these deals and undertaking the works, we generally agree with landlords to enter into a fixed, long-term tenancy term (like 36 months) to provide our clients with security for the foreseeable future whilst their claim progresses.
Our data shows the average length of tenancy that our clients usually reside in rental properties spans between 4–7 years, so providing fixed-term security is essential — especially when considering the time required prior to the immediate end of the tenancy to undertake the necessary reinstatement works.
Clearly, moving to rolling tenancy contracts could have a truly detrimental impact on a sub-sector of people in such vulnerable situations.
The Conversation Continues
We’ve set out a robust argument about the consequences the Rental Reform Bill, in its proposed form, will have for some of the most vulnerable renters in the country.
We’ve taken that argument directly to the people working to enact this legislation. We’ll continue the fight and report back as progress happens.
As previously mentioned, we are also more than happy to express the views of other stakeholders, so please feel free to get in touch with your thoughts at hello@plg.uk.
Phill Gill, Director
Thursday 19th June, PLG Consultants
