What the Renters Reform Bill means for renters

For all you renters out there, you’ll want to hear about this…

What is the Renters Reform Bill?

The Renters Reform Bill is a white paper (a policy document produced by the Government), which was first proposed by Theresa May back in 2019. A ‘step change’ in protections for renters, it aims to improve conditions and rights for tenants.

Finally published on June 16th this year, the bill hopes to protect the vulnerable and new measures to tackle unfair rent increases.

What’s in the bill?

The white paper includes plans to:

• Abolish Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions
• Get rid of short-term tenancy agreements and introduce open-ended tenancies
• Double the notice period for rent increases and stop clauses in tenancy agreements that allow for big hikes
• Introduce something called the basic “decent homes standard” to improve conditions
• Stop landlords discriminating against people who receive benefits and people with children
• Introduce the legal right for renters to have pets
• Create a new ombudsman to deal with complaints and disputes

When will it become law?

There’s no fixed time period, but the bill will need to pass through several stages in the House of Commons and the House of Lords before it becomes law.

Overall, the Renters Reform Bill will allow tenants to reclaim some authority back from landlords. It has been called “the biggest change to the private rental sector for a generation,” and could introduce some much needed security for the UK’s millions of renters.