Tenant not paying rent in North London

While being a landlord can be a rewarding investment, if your tenant stops paying rent, it can be a very stressful time. It can be tempting to react immediately, but it is important to deal with the situation calmy and by following the correct legal processes. If you don’t comply with the relevant legislation, you could have even more worries than non-payment of rent.

If you are a landlord in Willesden Green, Kilburn or West Hampstead – or beyond – this article will help you to safely navigate the unwanted situation of a tenant not paying their rent.

What Should I Do If My Tenant Stops Paying Rent?

The first step to resolve the situation is to contact the tenant but you should make sure that you do so professionally, without breaching any rules. For example, you should avoid behaviour that could be deemed as harassment.

The best approach is to either call the tenant, or send an email or text message to find out more about the reason behind the unpaid rent. There may be a simple explanation that can be easily rectified.

If the situation escalates to a point where you need to go to court, records of all the communications regarding the missed rent payment will be important evidence. So, if you speak to the tenant over the phone, you should send a follow up email that summarises the conversion and any agreement that is made.

At this point, you should be looking to get a better understanding of the situation and if a simple solution is not possible and you need to take further steps, you should do this in a measured way.

The following sections explain the processes to follow to try and resolve the situation while adhering to the regulations.

Do’s And Dont’s When Seeking To Claim Rent

There are several actions that could land you in trouble, so be careful to avoid any of the following:

Don’t:

• Trespass on the property
• Change the locks
• Act in a way that is aggressive or unprofessional
• Harass the tenant or show unreasonable behaviour
• Cut off electricity or gas supply
• Try to evict the tenant without following the correct legal processes

Do:

• Communicate in a professional and empathetic manner
• Keep records of your communications with your tenant
• Provide options to help resolve the situation e.g. repayment plans
• Explain the potential consequences if the rent goes unpaid

Want to know more? If rent arrears continue to mount and communication breaks down, our guide to how to evict a tenant explains the legal steps to follow, including the difference between a Section 8 and Section 21 notice.

My Tenant Is Not Paying Rent – How To Respond

These are the steps to take to handle unpaid rent legally and professionally:

1.Keep Calm And Understand The Situation

Before you make any rash decisions, remember that you must stay calm and communicate with your tenant in a polite and courteous way. If you act unprofessionally, this could cause you problems if the situation escalates and goes to court.

2.Contact Your Tenant

Contact your tenant to advise them of the missed payment and to find out why the payment has been missed, there may be a legitimate reason for the missed payment that can be easily resolved.

Be empathetic to their situation and if they are unable to make the payment immediately, discuss some options such as setting up a repayment plan or direct them to a charity such as Step Change if they are going through financial difficulties.

3.Contact Your Tenant Formally By Letter

If a resolution has not been reached and the rent is unpaid after a few days or you do not hear back from the tenant, send a formal letter to request that the outstanding payment is made. Include a statement that you will need to take the matter further by serving an eviction notice if you do not receive the missed payment.

4.Follow Up With A Second Letter

If you do not receive the payment 14 days after the formal letter has been delivered, the next step is to send a further letter, again, explaining you will need to take legal action if you do not receive payment. You should either send the letter in first class post or hand deliver the letter.

Also contact the guarantor if there is one, advising them of the situation, as they will be legally obliged to make the payment if the tenant is not able to.

5.Contact Your Insurer (Or Deposit Protection Scheme)

By this point, you should be checking your options in regard to how you may be able to claim back your lost income. Your landlord insurance or rent guarantee scheme may cover unpaid rent, so contact the provider to check what is covered and what the process is for submitting a claim for rent arrears, court fees and legal costs. Ask the insurer about which documents you will need to provide to support your claim.

You will also be able to deduct unpaid rent from the deposit at the end of the tenancy if you are not covered by insurance, so contact the tenancy deposit scheme to find out how to do this.

6.Provide A Final Letter And Warning

After 21 days, if the missed payment has still not been paid, send a third letter to confirm that you are going to take legal action to seek possession of the property. If you are not sure what information to include in the letter, you can use a template to ensure you have included the correct details.

The final warning letter should include:

• The date of the notice
• Tenant’s name and address
• Landlord’s name and address
• Amount owed
• Due dates of the missed payments
• The terms for payments included in your tenancy agreement
• A statement outlining that you will start legal proceedings if the rent is not paid

Want to find out more? For earlier-stage advice, read our guide to dealing with late rent payment — or explore how tenant referencing can help you avoid problematic tenancies in the first place.

7.Serve An Eviction Notice

If you get to this stage and have still not received the payment, the next step is to serve an eviction notice to start the eviction process. There are two types of eviction notices that you can use to evict a tenant under the Housing Act 1988:

• Section 8 – A section 8 eviction notice can be served if the terms of the tenancy are breached, which includes rent arrears. When serving a section 8 notice, you will need to prove the grounds for eviction.
• Section 21 – Landlords can serve a section 21 notice without providing a reason for eviction if the fixed term of the tenancy is coming to an end. However, section 21 is set to be abolished in the near future under the Renters Rights Bill.

Once the eviction notice has been served, the case will be reviewed by the court and a judge will determine the outcome. This could be ordering the tenant to pay a specified amount and/or leave the property on a specified date. The court may also order the tenant to cover the legal costs and court fees.

My tenant is not paying rent – next steps

Dealing with unpaid rent is a situation that no landlord wants to find themselves in, but it is possible to reduce the risk of this happening through comprehensive referencing and credit checks.

As an experienced estate agent covering areas including Queens Park and Cricklewood, we can help with finding reliable tenants or ensure the correct legal procedures are followed in the event that the tenant doesn’t pay their rent on time. Contact our team to find out more about how we can help.