Lobby MPs on consequence of 5 month ban on repossessions

Landlords are being rallied to lobby their Members of Parliament to highlight the consequence of the five month ban on repossessions, due to end on 23 August.

The National Residential Landlords Association and Landlord Action are joining forces to encourage landlords affected to tell their MPs about the impact it is having and the need to prioritise urgent cases when the courts begin to hear them again.

Landlord Action alone has approximately 500 live pre-COVID cases stuck in the system as a result of court closures. One landlord, David Healy, is owed over £10,000 in arrears and his tenant has not paid any rent since November 2019. Mr Healy’s court hearing, which was due to take place on 5 May, has been adjourned and he does not yet know when this will be rescheduled for.

The ban prevents landlords being able to take swift action against those committing anti-social behaviour, causing misery for other tenants in the same property as them. One tenant, Rowan Castle, has launched a petition calling for landlords to be given the immediate ability to evict those committing anti-social behaviour.

On twitter he has said: “This is a total disaster. I’m living in a shared house with a nightmare tenant. We all want her gone, as does the landlady. Her anti-social behaviour is driving us and the neighbours up the wall. She was due to go on 1st July. I can’t put up with it for another 2 months.”

The importance of lobbying MPs will be highlighted during a webinar to take place this Wednesday (1 July) during which Ben Beadle (Chief Executive of the NRLA), Paul Shamplina (founder of Landlord Action) and Vanessa Warwick (co-founder of Property Tribes) will discuss the impact of the repossessions ban, what things might look like in the autumn and the important role that landlords can play in the campaign.

Ben Beadle and Paul Shamplina said:

“In the vast majority of cases landlords and tenants are working hard to sustain tenancies wherever possible. It is vital, however, that as courts begin to hear repossession cases again, that they prioritise the most urgent. This includes cases of anti-social behaviour, those where rent arrears were building pre-COVID and cases which were started, but then paused, prior to lockdown.

“To support this landlords have a vital role to play in telling their MPs about the impact the repossessions ban is having as well as highlighting the ways in which they are supporting their tenants through the current crisis.”

• The webinar takes places on Wednesday 1 July between 12 noon and 1pm. Those wanting to register to take part can do so at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/457472011775443725. Those registering for will be sent a link to the recording, even if they cannot attend live.
• Questions for the panel should be emailed to policy@nrla.org.uk by 9am on Wednesday 1 July. A selection will also be chosen live on the day.

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