Myth busting the Renters’ Rights Act

The Renters’ Rights Act is a complex piece of legislation that is due to start coming into force in earnest on 1 May 2026.

Due to its complexity, it is no wonder, perhaps, that already there are many myths circulating about the Bill, and advice that is simply wrong.

Wearing my hat as a former senior in-house lawyer, and a current landlord, in this blog post I go through the top ten myths about the Renters’ Rights Act, and set the record straight.

I’ve seen all of these recently on social media and in the press, but I’ll spare the blushes of who said what!

PS If you’re looking for extra support, you can find courses, resources, templates and twice-monthly live Q&As on the Renters’ Rights Bill, come and in The Independent Landlord Hub. Come and join us. Everyone is welcome 😊

Myth 1: “No fault evictions” will be abolished

The Renters’ Rights Act will indeed remove Section 21 from the Housing Act 1988, once the relevant part of the Act comes into force (Chapter 1 of Part 1). Section 21 currently gives landlords the right to evict tenants without having a valid reason, known as a “ground”. It doesn’t mean there isn’t a reason, just that landlords can evict a tenant without having to prove to a judge that they have grounds to do so.

However, the abolition of Section 21 will not end the right of landlords to evict tenants when there has been no fault on the part of the tenant.

Landlords will be able to evict tenants if they intend to sell up, move in themselves or have their close family move in, redevelop and if they let to HMO Students and wish to let to another group of full time students.

>> Related Post: How the new Section 8 Grounds for Possession will work in Renters’ Rights Bill

Myth 2: Section 21 was abolished immediately after Royal Assent

Section 21 was not abolished when the Renters’ Rights Bill becomes the Renters’ Rights Act 2025, on 27 October 2025.

Instead, Section 21 will be abolished when the new assured tenancy system comes into force, along with the rest of the provisions in Chapter 1 of Part 1 of the Bill, on what is called the “commencement date”. This will be on 1 May 2026.

Any valid Section 21 notices that are served by 1 May 2026 will continue to be valid, so long as the landlord applies to the court to issue an application for an order for possession by 31 July 2026.

>> Related Post: When is the last day to serve a Section 21 notice?

>> Related Post: When will the Renters’ Rights Act come into effect?

Myth 3: It will be “too difficult for landlords to self-manage”

I hear this a lot, especially from letting agents. For a start, I think this infantilises landlords, many of whom are more than capable of managing their own portfolio.

Sure, there are some who’ve been on a course, still believe in the “18 year property cycle” and think property investing is passive income. Or who don’t take it seriously. Some don’t want the hassle. But there are many landlords who are more than capable of managing their own portfolio. They understand it’s more than arranging repairs, and they take time to keep up to date with the latest compliance requirements.

It’s true that the Renters’ Rights Act is complicated, but there’s plenty of guidance out there for landlords to follow. For instance, this free resource on my website, Checklists to comply with Renters’ Rights Act, and this short training video on YouTube: The Renters’ Rights Act in under 10 minutes.

With the civil penalties for breaching the provisions in the Renters’ Rights Act so high, all landlords should take the time to understand the new rules. The fact they use letting agents won’t be a complete defence for most breaches. Landlords will still carry the can.

An easy way to get trained on Renters’ Rights compliance, and how it fits into landlords’ wider obligations, is to join The Independent Landlord Hub. Courses come as standard, along with exclusive checklists and templates, twice monthly live webinars where you can ask questions, and an active forum, all in a supportive “no sales promotions” environment, where the focus is on how to comply with the practicalities.

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Myth 4: Landlords will be required to use letting agents

I’ve seen comments in forums that landlords will not be allowed to self-manage. This is untrue.

I might add that letting agents do not currently need to have any qualifications to manage property (although the better ones will have at least a Level 3 qualification). Landlords should make sure their agents are properly qualified.

Myth 5: Landlords will need to “pay back any rent paid in advance”

First of all, Clause 8 (Prohibition of rent in advance after lease entered into (except initial rent)) states categorically that the prohibition of in-tenancy rent in advance contained in only applies to tenancies entered into after the commencement date.

In other words, rent already paid in advance, and clauses in existing ASTs that require tenants to pay future rent in advance (eg quarterly in advance), will not be affected by the new rules which state that any clauses in a tenancy that require tenants to pay rent in advance will be “of no effect”. This means that existing tenancies are outside the scope of these new rules, and no rent already paid will need to be refunded by the landlord.

The only exception comes with Clause 10 (Repayment of rent paid for days after end of tenancy). This covers the situation where a tenant has paid rent in advance, but the tenancy ends before the rent has been “used up”. In that case, a tenant is “entitled to be repaid any part of that rent that relates to days falling after the end of the tenancy”.

In a similar vein, if tenants pay rent early voluntarily, for instance if rent is due on Boxing Day, they may pay it on Christmas Eve, it won’t be a breach of the Tenant Fees Act (TFA) for a landlord to accept an early payment. This is because it will only be a breach of the TFA if the tenant pays the rent to the landlord before a new assured tenancy agreement is entered into.

>> Related Post: The new rules banning rent in advance in Renters’ Rights Bill

Myth 6: Landlords should “remove rent review clauses from tenancy agreements” now

There is no need for landlords to remove rent review clauses from their existing tenancy agreements now. These clauses will continue to be valid until 30 April 2026. From 1 May 2026, any rent review clauses will be “of no effect”, and will be disregarded.

Landlords may well choose to issue new assured tenancy agreements after the commencement date to remove clauses that no longer have effect, but there is no need to delete rent review clauses from existing assured shorthold tenancy agreements now.

Myth 7: Rent guarantee insurance will be “necessary to protect your rental income and possible exposure to legal costs“

Taking out insurance to cover rent arrears and legal costs is a perfectly valid way to mitigate some of the increase risks the Renters’ Rights Act will bring. However, this won’t be necessary for all landlords and it won’t address all of the increased risks.

If landlords have good, long term tenants who have never been in rent arrears, the likelihood of them suddenly not paying their rent is probably low. On the other hand, if you have a new tenant, maybe it does make sense to hedge your bets for the first couple of years and take out insurance.

I prefer prevention, rather than compensation, which is why I believe we should spend more time on choosing good tenants in the first place. Not just relying on standard references, but doing our own check. For instance, calling previous landlords for a reference yourself. They’re far more likely to be forthcoming that the current landlord, who may be only too pleased to be shot of them!

>> Related Post: How to Choose Good Tenants

Myth 8: Rent must be increased “by serving a s13 notice every 12 months after giving two months’ notice”

This is almost right, but not quite.

As is the case now with Section 13, the notice must expire on the date the rent is due to be paid – see the case of Mooney v Whiteland (2023).

This means that the landlord will always need to serve the notice a little more than 2 months in advance, unless they happen to hand it over before 4:30pm on the working day that is exactly 2 months before the rent is due to change.

Also, the crucial point is that the 12 month rule is counted from the last time that the rent was increased using a Section 13 notice. This means if a landlord increased rent by exchange of letters or an addendum outside of a fixed term six months previously, that rent increase will be disregarded.

And in the future, the clock will start ticking 12 months from when the new rent came into effect after a Section 13 notice was served. This will be at least 14 months from the date of service of the Section 13 notice (Form 4), to allow for the minimum of two months’ notice.

It may be even longer than 14 months if the tenants challenge the rent increase at a First-tier Tribunal, as the new rent will come into effect after the the judge mades a determination, which may be some months after the tenant challenges the rent increase.

>> Related Post: How to increase rent with Form 4 Notice (Section 13)

>> Related Post: The new rules about rent in the Renters’ Rights Bill

Myth 9: The Renters’ Rights Act will introduce rent controls

The Renters’ Rights Act does not introduce rent controls.

What it does do is make it less risky for tenants to challenge rent increases by appealing them at the First-tier Tribunal. This is because the tribunal will no longer be able to increase the rent, and the date the rent increase comes into effect will be delayed until after the judge comes to a decision.

This may well “stabilise” rents and make landlords less likely to put up the rent, but it’s not the same as putting an arbitrary cap on rent increases.

The government has been at pains to point out on numerous occasions that they will not introduce rent controls.

Myth 10: Landlords won’t be able to insist on a guarantor

It is not true that landlords won’t be able to ask for a guarantor, eg a parent, to guarantee the rent, once the Renters’ Rights Bill comes into effect.

Landlords will be able to continue to ask a tenant for someone to guarantee the rent. The only change the Bill makes about guarantees is that the liability of a guarantor will end if the tenant dies.

Several MPs including Carla Denyer proposed an amendment to the Bill to restrict the ability of landlords to ask tenants to provide guarantors, but it never made it onto the Bill.

However, many people believe it is in the Act because of incorrect information in forums and on social media.

Final thoughts

With so many myths circulating about the Renters’ Rights Act, it’s important to obtain your information from reliable sources.

As well as signing up for my free weekly newsletter, link below, you can also become part of The Independent Landlord Hub for extra support, and reliable, practical guidance on how to comply with the Renters’ Rights Act, and much more!