Following changes to the law in 2022 the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 (“RHWA”), tenants and licences have been called ‘contract holders’ ever since and their tenancy or licence agreements have been replaced by ‘occupation contracts’ although the terms ‘tenants’ and ‘tenancy’ continue to be widely used causing some confusion.
Following the introduction of the RHWA, landlords were required to issue a ‘written statement’ of the occupation contract to all contract-holders which replaced their current agreement by June 2022. The written statement should contain all required contractual terms.
As we stand today, all new rentals and ‘contract holders’ must be provided with the written statement within 14 days of occupation. A failure to do so may mean the landlord is liable to pay compensation. Perhaps more importantly, the landlord will not be able to serve a ‘no fault’ eviction notice until they have done so and at least 6 months has elapsed following that.
The RHWA also brought provisions that all rental properties must be fit for human habitation in accordance with various rules and regulations. The act also brought changes around retaliatory eviction rules. If, therefore, a landlord now issues a ‘no fault’ possession notice in response to a request for repair, the Court can refuse to make a possession order if the notice is deemed to be retaliatory in nature and to avoid the landlord’s obligations of repair. If a notice is deemed retaliatory then landlords will be prohibited in serving another ‘no fault’ notice for a period.
Where a contract-holder has breached the occupation contract the minimum notice period that must be given is one month, unless it relates to anti-social behaviour or serious rent arrears which will allow a shorter notice period.
For ‘no fault’ evictions, the notice period is 6 months, and the landlord cannot give such notice until 6 months after the contract starts. This therefore means that a contract holder has the right to stay at the property for 12 months as long as they do not breach the terms of the occupation contract.
If you are looking for further advice, please contact our Property Litigation team on 01792 655178 or email enquiries@bwl-law.co.uk