Tenants Without A Written Contract

I got a call earlier from a friend of mine; she explained to me that her landlord has requested for her to vacate his property by Saturday (4 days away). They had a dispute over the payment of rent.

She was in a panic because finding a reasonably priced place to rent in London with in 4 days is a mission impossible. She then explained how she had no written contract with her landlord, just a piece of paper declaring that she has paid a deposit, consequently she assumed she had no rights as a tenant. WRONG!!!

Firstly, a landlord or tenant that doesn’t have a written contract is an idiot. Written contracts are there for your utmost protection. I would question any tenant or landlord that doesn’t require a written contract. In my opinion it just triggers off a signal, “DODGY BASTARD”

There is no legal difference between a written or a verbal contract. In law a contract is a contract. BUT, if there is a dispute it clearly helps to have something in writing in order to verify what was agreed.

As soon as a landlord agrees to allow someone to rent his or her property and takes payment, a verbal contract is formed. So this whole, “get out of my property with in 3 days” rant won’t fly I’m afraid.

The fact someone does not have a written tenancy agreement does not affect a tenant’s legal rights. A landlord will still need to serve either a section 8 or 21 to evict a tenant, which takes at least 14 days AFTER the tenant receives it. In fact, there is no difference in procedure for evicting a tenant that hasn’t got a written contract than someone who has one, according to the law.

A tenant is entitled to stay in the property until evicted by a court bailiff (or High Court sheriff) acting under the authority of a court order for possession. If a tenant is evicted any other way then this renders the landlord liable to a claim for compensation for unlawful eviction.

Even if a tenant with no written contract is simply unhappy about the condition of the property, they still have rights. They can always speak to the Housing Officer at their Local Authority. They can arrange for the property to be inspected and for an improvement notice to be served on the landlord if the property does not meet the proper standards.

In conclusion, verbal contracts are just as binding as written contracts.

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2 Comments

Rod Thomas wrote, on Aug 12th, 2007

	Good Article and some good advice, although I don’t know if a forceful landlord would see it this way.
2

Badger wrote, on Jul 25th, 2007

	Very good advice thank you.
1

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