Landlord Products / Services
I’ll go ahead and say probably not, out of the gates.
Although I could be wrong.
However, with the introduction of the Renters’ Rights Act on 1 May 2026 and its focus on improving tenant security for private residential tenants in England, the Act has ended the use of Section 21 “no-fault” evictions, which were previously used by the darker forces in the industry, to evict tenants for a wide range of unjust reasons.
With the removal of Section 21, many of the less justifiable routes to eviction have gone with it, which means there are a whole lot less evictions. Which is why I opened with probably not.
That said, landlords can still, where appropriate, seek possession under defined grounds through Section 8, which remains the primary legal route for eviction.
Does Your Landlord Have Grounds for Eviction?
Landlords can only evict tenants if they have valid legal grounds. These are set out under Section 8 and must fall within a defined list of reasons.
The grounds include breaches of tenancy terms (such as rent arrears, breach of contract, or antisocial behaviour), as well as certain no-fault grounds (for example, where the landlord intends to sell the property).
In other words, if a landlord can demonstrate that your situation falls within one of these grounds, they may have the right to pursue eviction. If none of the grounds apply, it is unlikely that they will have valid grounds for possession.
In addition, each ground carries its own notice period and procedural requirements. For example, where a landlord relies on a no-fault ground such as selling the property, they cannot usually require the tenant to leave within the first 12 months of a tenancy, and must provide at least four months’ notice. Where the eviction is based on a breach of tenancy, such as rent arrears, the tenant must typically have accrued 3 months of arrears before a notice can be issued.
Here is a list of the grounds for eviction and their associated notice periods.
There Are No Longer Fixed-Term Tenancies
The Renters’ Rights Act ended the use of fixed-term tenancies, replacing them with assured periodic tenancies (APT). This means most tenancies now operate as rolling agreements with no fixed end date.
In practical terms, that means landlords can no longer evict tenants simply because a fixed term has come to an end, even if a fixed end date was previously agreed.
For example, before the Renters’ Rights Act, it was common for a fixed-term tenancy agreement to specify an end date, often 12 months after the start of the tenancy. At or after that date, landlords could, in theory, seek possession. However, this is no longer permitted, and landlords cannot repossess a property on that basis alone.
As a result, the majority of tenancies can no longer end simply due to the expiry of a fixed term.
If a landlord wishes to evict a tenant, they must now rely on one of the specific grounds set out under Section 8. If none of those grounds apply, they will not be able to lawfully evict the tenant unless the tenant agrees to surrender the tenancy.
Being told to vacate at the end of a tenancy? That’s not a valid ground for eviction. There is no end date anymore!
Being evicted for complaining? That’s not a valid ground for eviction.
Can I Be Evicted for Refusing a Rent Increase?
Not for simply refusing, but you need to challenge it properly, otherwise you could end up falling into arrears, and be evicted on that ground.
Tenants have the right to challenge rent increases via the First-tier Tribunal if they believe they are unjust (for example, if they are above market rate), and landlords cannot evict tenants solely for doing so. I’ve gone into more detail on challenging rent increases, which covers landlords and tenants right on the issue.
I hope that helps!
Landlord out xo
Disclaimer: I'm just a landlord blogger; I'm 100% not qualified to give legal or financial advice. I'm a doofus. Any information I share is my unqualified opinion, and should never be construed as professional legal or financial advice. You should definitely get advice from a qualified professional for any legal or financial matters. For more information, please read my full disclaimer.
Thanks for bringing some clarity / sanity to the issue!
As is often the way, it seems a lot of problems in this area arise due to an information imbalance.
Either a tenant is panicked as they aren't sure of their rights and the appropriate response when they are served a notice - or a landlord doesn't know how or when they are allowed/supposed to take action either when something goes wrong or at the end of a tenancy. This leaves them exposed to falling foul of some regulation or deadline, or in a worse case being taken advantage of by someone more savvy or knowledgeable on the other side.
(And yes, we are trying to help address some of these problems with OpenRent..!)