Have you received a Section 21 Notice from your Landlord? Are you unsure whether the Notice is valid or what your rights are? There is a strict procedure any Landlord must follow to obtain possession of a property. If these rules are not followed, in certain cases, it could amount to an illegal eviction.
During the pandemic the amount of notice a Landlord had to give was extended, as of the 1st October 2021 the notice period returned to 2 months.
If you have received a Section 21 Notice from your Landlord this does not mean you have breached your tenancy, its is often referred to as a ‘no fault notice’ and the Landlord does not have to give a reason.
A Section 21 Notice has to be on the correct form, you must be given the correct amount of notice, the rules regarding the gas safe certificate and deposit must have been followed by the Landlord. If not, the Notice could be invalid.
On the expiry of a Notice, if you haven’t moved out of the property, the Landlord must apply to Court for possession. If a Landlord follows the accelerated possession procedure, there might not be a hearing. You will receive documentation from the Court to advise you of this, you should not ignore any documentation you receive from the Court.
Once a Landlord obtains a Possession Order from the Court this will state a date on which you should leave the property. If you haven’t left the property by that date, a Landlord can instruct a Court Bailiff or High Court Enforcement Officer to evict you from the property.
The possession process varies in time and this is dependant upon how busy the Court is, if a Court hearing is needed and how quickly a Landlord acts after serving a Notice.
Please be aware, each individual case will have its own set of unique circumstances in assessing how to apply the above procedure. If you have received a Notice, contact us so we can advise on your specific case . Telephone 0114 225 6666 or email enquiries@shulaw.co.uk