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I’ve always maintained that most of the Tenancy Agreements out in the wild and available off-the-shelf are a pile of crap, especially the downloadable freebies floating around on the web.
That’s largely due to two primary reasons:
- Legislative changes: With the private rental sector constantly evolving, particularly due to ongoing legislative changes, tenancy agreements often need to be updated to remain compliant.
Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case, and there are a large number of outdated tenancy agreements still in circulation, containing terms that are no longer relevant or enforceable. That’s why it’s important to be careful about which one you use.
I’ve even seen letting agents using versions that are more than a decade old. Worrying. But not exactly surprising.
- Butchering: They get butchered by cowboy landlords, filling them with their own makeshift and sometimes unenforceable clauses. Over time, these flawed agreements get passed from one landlord to another, with each adding their own changes, gradually diluting the quality and reliability of the original document.
So avoid using an inadequate tenancy agreement. Here are a few tips…
Actually Read Your Tenancy Agreement
First and foremost, I know for a fact that a large number of people don’t even bother reading their tenancy agreements before signing. This applies to both landlords and tenants.
Bear in mind that not all tenancy agreements are built the same, and they can contain unintended or poorly drafted terms and conditions. Once signed on the dotted line, and assuming the terms are enforceable, you are legally bound by them.
It is always advisable to read the tenancy agreement in full so that every detail is properly understood before signing.
Is Your Tenancy Agreement Up to Date?
A few clear signs that a tenancy agreement may be outdated or unsuitable include:
- Renters’ Rights Act: The Renters’ Rights Act came into force on 1 May 2026 and introduced a wide range of changes, many of which directly impact tenancy terms. As a result, virtually all tenancy agreements created before this date that are used to start a new tenancy on or after 1 May 2026 are likely to be out of date.
Be mindful of the following:
- Fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs) no longer permitted – Tenancy agreements created after this date should only include a start date and no fixed end date.
If your tenancy agreement still refers to an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) and/or includes a fixed end date for a “fixed term”, it is likely outdated. From 1 May 2026, new tenancy agreements should instead be Assured Periodic Tenancies (APT).
- Break Clauses: Break clauses were previously very common, allowing both landlords and tenants to end a tenancy early before the fixed term end date. However, break clauses can no longer be used by landlords to end a tenancy.
- Tenant Notification Period: Landlords cannot contractually require tenants to provide a notice period longer than two months.
- Pet clauses: Blanket bans on pets are no longer permitted, and clauses that completely prohibit pets or prevent tenants from requesting permission are likely outdated.
- Rent increases: Check for any terms mentioning rent increases, as the rules have been updated:
- Rent increases are limited to once per year and must reflect the market rate.
- Rent cannot be increased during the first year of the tenancy.
- Fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs) no longer permitted – Tenancy agreements created after this date should only include a start date and no fixed end date.
- Tenancy Deposit Protection: No mention of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme.
- GDPR compliance: GDPR came into effect on 25 May 2018 and applies to all landlords. This means all documents used to collect tenant data, including tenancy agreements, should include a privacy notice explaining how data is collected, used, and stored.
- Tenant Fees Act 2019: The Tenant Fees Act 2019 came into force on 1 June 2019 and restricts what landlords and letting agents can charge tenants.
Permitted payments are limited to:
- Rent
- Tenancy deposit
- Holding deposit
- Payments to change the tenancy when requested by the tenant
- Payments for early termination when requested by the tenant
- Utilities, communication services, TV licence, and council tax
- Default fees for late rent and replacement of lost keys/security devices (where specified in the agreement)
Where a tenancy agreement (for agreements started on or after 1 June 2019) includes charges outside of these permitted payments, or exceeds the allowable limits, it is likely outdated and non-compliant with current legislation.
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Is Your Tenancy Agreement Easy to Understand?
For a tenancy agreement to be considered fair, it must meet the requirements set out in the relevant regulations, which means the following should be adhered to:
- The terms in the contract must be written in plain language that is clear and easy to understand
- The terms of the contract must be considered fair under the applicable fairness test
- The parties must have entered into the agreement in good faith
Always ensure the contract is easy to understand so you are not left confused by technical jargon or unclear wording.
Who Is Responsible for Paying the Bills?
Pay close attention to who is responsible for paying the bills, as this should be clearly stated in the tenancy agreement. This typically includes utility bills such as gas, electricity, and water, as well as council tax.
Obviously, blindly signing a tenancy agreement without understanding the terms relating to bill payments can be catastrophic for either party.
Written Statement of Terms
All good tenancy agreements should contain the following information, which is considered standard:
- Dates: The date on which the agreement was made
- Landlord Details: The name and address of the landlord(s)
- Tenant Details: The name and address of the tenant(s)
- Property Details: The address of the property being rented
- Term: The start date of the tenancy (and end date if applicable)
- Rent: The amount of rent payable, the method of payment, and the payment date
- Deposit: The amount of any deposit payable (if applicable) and what it covers
- Deposit Scheme: Details of the tenancy deposit protection scheme used
- Landlord’s Obligations: The responsibilities of the landlord
- Tenant’s Obligations: The responsibilities of the tenant
- Signatures: Signature(s) of both the landlord(s) and tenant(s)
The Renters’ Rights Act requires landlords to provide tenants with a “written statement of terms” before they sign the tenancy agreement. This is essentially a summary of key information about the tenancy, such as landlord details, the tenancy start date, and the rent amount.
While most standard tenancy agreements already include much of this information (even older ones), they are unlikely to include every required detail.
This information can either be included directly within the tenancy agreement or provided as a separate document, which is why if your copy doesn’t contain all the required information, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s out of date or incomplete.
However, I think it’s clearer and more practical to include everything within the tenancy agreement itself. If you choose not to issue a separate document, you should ensure your tenancy agreement contains all required information in full, and that each named tenant is given the opportunity to read it before signing.
Here’s a blog post on the written statement of terms, which explains the key information that must be provided to tenants.
Does the Tenancy Agreement Require Witnesses?
Although it is not a legal requirement for tenancy agreements to be signed in the presence of witnesses, having a witness can be useful in situations where a signature is later disputed by either party.
In my opinion, a tenancy agreement without space for witness signatures is incomplete and less robust as a formal agreement.
What If Your Tenancy Agreement Is Out of Date?
If you suspect you are using a tenancy agreement that is out of date or non-compliant, it will not invalidate your tenancy – both tenant and landlord will still have a legally valid tenancy agreement, with their statutory rights in tact. However, it does mean that some of the terms may no longer be relevant or enforceable.
This can potentially lead to confusion and unintended breaches. For example, if your tenancy agreement includes a break clause that a landlord attempts to rely on or after 1st May 2026, this would not be a lawful way of ending the tenancy, and the landlord could face enforcement action.
In reality, it is the landlord’s responsibility to ensure they stay up-to-date with key changes in the private rental sector and avoid negligence or overstepping the law.
While it’s impossible for me to provide a definitive guide on how to ensure your tenancy agreement is fully compliant with current legislation and up to date – least of all because I’m not qualified to do so – hopefully I’ve highlighted some tell-tale signs that you might be using a dud.
Landlord out xo
Download Your Tenancy Agreement
- Only £4.99 - download once and unlimited use
- All of our Tenancy Agreements were originally drafted by specialist landlord law solicitors
- Provided in .doc format so fully editable
- Written in "plain English" with easy to understand terms and conditions
- GDPR updated
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.
Great site with loads of useful articles. This is a really comprehensive guide.
My husband used to be a lettings agent and we weren't aware of all the intricacies until he he was working as a lettings agent. However, these contracts only hold to a certain degree, if they break the law, it is the law that overrides the contract. For example, if the tenancy agreement says that the landlord only needs to give 12 hours notice to enter the property it will be overrided by the law which requires 24 hours notice.
In other words, just because it is written in the contract doesn't mean you are bound to it, because what is in the tenancy agree may be illegal.