By Dirk Dette, Director of Compliance at Campions Group
What does a £7,000 compliance mistake look like? It may not involve an unsafe property or deliberate wrongdoing. Under the Renters’ Rights Act, it could begin with the wrong terminology, a clumsy email, a missing document or a process that was previously routine.
More serious or repeated offences can attract penalties of up to £40,000.
The legislation represents the most significant change to England’s private rented sector in more than 30 years. It affects how tenancies are structured, rents are reviewed, properties are marketed and possession is regained.
The real risk for landlords is continuing to follow familiar practices without realising that the rules have changed.
At Campions, we have a dedicated Compliance Division overseeing Chestertons and our other estate agencies.
This remains unusual among London estate agencies, but the scale and complexity of the new legislation make that specialist oversight essential.
Chestertons combines street-by-street local knowledge with a connected London-wide network. That market expertise is supported by rigorous processes, professional property management and experienced people who remain on top of the detail throughout the tenancy.
One of the biggest misunderstandings about the Renters’ Rights Act is that the abolition of Section 21 has made it impossible for landlords to recover their properties. It has not.
Landlords can still seek possession when there is a valid legal reason, including serious rent arrears or antisocial behaviour, or because they intend to sell the property or move into it themselves.
What has changed is the process. Landlords must use the appropriate Section 8 ground, provide the correct notice and be able to evidence the circumstances on which they are relying.
A landlord who regains possession because they intend to sell or move into the property cannot simply put it back on the rental market if their plans change. There is generally a 12-month restricted period during which the property cannot be relet or remarketed.
Breaching that restriction can be treated as an offence, with a financial penalty of up to £40,000 as an alternative to prosecution.
Even an informal email, text message or WhatsApp message telling a tenant to leave could be interpreted as an invalid attempt to end the tenancy.
Landlords should therefore obtain advice before serving notice, not after something has gone wrong.
For Chestertons landlords, local teams can draw on the wider experience of colleagues across our London network, supported by Campions’ Compliance Division.
Local knowledge helps us understand the individual property and tenancy, while specialist oversight helps ensure that the correct process is followed.
One easily overlooked requirement is the information that must be provided to tenants – and the rules differ for existing and new tenancies.
Tenants with written agreements created before 1 May 2026 should have received the government’s Renters’ Rights Act Information Sheet by 31 May. A copy had to be sent to every tenant named on the agreement.
For tenancies created after 1 May, landlords must provide prescribed written information about the key terms before the tenancy is agreed or signed. This can be included within the tenancy agreement or supplied separately.
Failing to provide the correct information at the correct time can result in a penalty of up to £7,000. Landlords and agents therefore need a clear record of what was issued, when it was sent and who received.
Most assured shorthold tenancies automatically became assured periodic tenancies (APTs) when the principal reforms took effect on 1 May. New assured tenancies now operate on a rolling basis rather than having a fixed end date.
Yet old terminology and working habits can be difficult to eliminate. Continuing to describe a tenancy as fixed-term, inserting an end date or telling a tenant that they must leave when that date arrives is not simply an administrative oversight.
Claiming to grant a fixed-term assured tenancy can attract a penalty of up to £7,000.
This is why training must reach beyond senior managers and compliance specialists.
Negotiators, administrators, property managers and branch teams all communicate with landlords and tenants. A casual phrase in an email or conversation can create unnecessary risk.
Chestertons invested in several months of structured Renters’ Rights Act training across its lettings operations. We also reviewed tenancy documentation, marketing practices, operational systems and possession procedures.
The objective was not simply to explain the legislation. It was to ensure that the new requirements were understood and applied consistently by the people advising landlords and tenants every day.
Landlords remain able to increase rents to reflect market conditions, but generally only once a year, using the prescribed Section 13 process. The tenant must receive the correct form and at least two months’ notice.
Rent cannot be increased during the first 12 months of a new tenancy, and tenants can challenge an increase they believe exceeds the market rent.
The Act has also banned rental bidding. A property must be advertised at a specific rent, and neither the landlord nor the agent can ask for, encourage or accept an offer above that figure.
This does not prevent a landlord from setting an appropriate asking rent at the outset. It does mean that pricing must be considered carefully before the property is marketed.
This is where Chestertons’ street-by-street knowledge matters. London is not one homogeneous rental market, and conditions can vary significantly between adjoining roads, property types and price points.
There are also restrictions on rent in advance. Once the tenancy agreement has been signed, landlords and agents can generally require no more than one month’s rent in advance. They cannot request, encourage or accept rent before the agreement has been signed.
The new rules on pets have also caused confusion.
Tenants do not have an unconditional right to keep any pet in any property. They have the right to make a request and to have that request considered properly. A landlord may still refuse where there is a reasonable, evidence-based justification for doing so – for example, where a superior lease prohibits pets. The important point is that a blanket refusal, without considering the individual request, may not be sufficient.
Landlords should assess the animal, the property, the terms of any superior lease and the tenant’s circumstances, then record the reason for their decision.
The same principle applies to applicants with children or those receiving benefits.
Blanket exclusions are unlawful. Applications can still be assessed using legitimate and consistently applied affordability and suitability criteria, but assumptions about an applicant’s circumstances should not determine the outcome.
The Renters’ Rights Act is sometimes discussed as if it were largely about tenancy agreements and possession notices. In reality, it brings higher standards, clearer accountability and greater scrutiny of how rented homes are managed.
A good property manager does far more than arrange a contractor when a boiler breaks.
They maintain accurate records, monitor safety obligations, coordinate repairs, communicate with tenants and ensure important deadlines are not missed. This can prevent minor issues from becoming expensive disputes.
The forthcoming Private Rented Sector Database and landlord ombudsman will place even greater emphasis on record-keeping, complaints handling and property standards.
With experienced local teams supported by professional property managers and Campions’ dedicated Compliance Division, Chestertons landlords are well placed to navigate these changes.