On 11 January 2021 the Public Health (Coronavirus) (Protection from Eviction) (England) Regulations 2021 came into force, changing again the position for landlords and tenants in England and in this article Rebecca summarises the implications.
The Regulations will be in force until 21 February 2021. They prevent the attendance at a residential property to evict the tenant except in certain situations and have been expanded beyond the exemptions under the previous regulations.
The evictions will be able to proceed when the court is satisfied that the warrant relates to possession made in the following situations:
– Against trespassers to which CPR, r55.6 applies.
– Anti-social behaviour, nuisance, domestic violence, or false statements.
– Death of the tenant where the person attending is satisfied that the dwelling house is unoccupied.
– Substantial rent arrears (the minimum has been reduced from nine months under the previous regulations to six months and those arrears can have accrued at any time).
There is an explanatory memorandum that accompanies the regulations which can be found here: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2021/15/pdfs/uksiem_20210015_en.pdf and this states that the restrictions have been widened to allow more landlords to take action where required, thus balancing the impact.
If you are obtaining a possession order and you believe one of the exemptions applies, then you should ensure this is recorded on the face of the order. If it is not, or you already have an order which doesn’t state an exemption applies, an application can be made under Part 23 of the Civil Procedure Rules.
If you require any assistance or advice in respect of housing or property matters, Rebecca would be happy to assist. Please contact her clerks at civil@cornwallstreet.co.uk