Landlords worry about the ‘Right to request pets’ in the Renters (Reform) Bill

Landlords in England say they are worried about the potential impact of the Renters (Reform) Bill on allowing tenants to request permission to keep pets in their home.

The findings from property services firm Leaders Romans Group (LRG) reveal that 56% of landlords anticipate negative consequences.

While the Bill will see section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions being abolished, many landlords fear the ‘right to request a pet’ will create challenges with property maintenance.

They also say that landlord-tenant relationships will be affected.

Last year, 53% of homes in the UK had a pet.

‘Introduction of pet-friendly policies in rental agreements’

LRG‘s group director of property management, Kim Lidbury, said: “The introduction of pet-friendly policies in rental agreements is a nuanced issue that requires careful consideration to balance the interests of tenants with those of landlords.

“Not all property types may be suitable for pets, for instance flats within blocks and properties without gardens.

“The third reading of the Bill recently included a mandate that tenants either maintain insurance to cover potential pet damage or compensate the landlord for the reasonable cost of obtaining such insurance.”

She added: “This is a positive step forward which does seem to address landlords’ concerns while also enhancing the lives of tenants and their pets.

“However more detail is still required to ensure that pets can only be requested in an appropriate property.”

Landlords worry over allowing pets

LRG’s survey highlights that landlords worry over allowing pets is higher than the prospect of removing Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions.

Notably, only 9.8% of landlords see a positive impact from the pet policy changes.

From a tenant’s perspective, 56% of landlords said the ‘right to request a pet’ is a positive – while 16% view it as negative, and 16% say it won’t make a difference.

However, the survey also found that 68% of tenants said they didn’t request a pet when they last moved – because they didn’t own one.

Asked a landlord to keep a pet

The survey found that 18% of tenants had asked a landlord to keep a pet and were accepted, 9% had difficulty but did find somewhere to rent.

Just 2% said they had difficulty finding a property and didn’t get a pet.

Landlords told researchers: “Ownership of dogs in flats [is] negative unless [there is] outside space – barking can be a problem!!” Another adds: “Don’t think people should be able to have dogs more easily – they are destructive if left alone, damage gardens, but most importantly, can create difficulties with neighbours as so many bark for long periods.”

A third landlord said: “Better for tenants but re the pets, more constraints on landlords trying to maintain decent standards of property.”

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