A legal expert has warned landlords that the era of advisory letters is over as councils in England have started to skip warnings and move straight to formal enforcement.

Landlord Licensing & Defence says authorities are now rolling out new enforcement policies under the Renters’ Rights Act and points to Portsmouth Council’s recent message to landlords on its licensing database.

“Portsmouth's updated policy - typical of all councils now - states explicitly that ‘formal enforcement may now be taken more quickly, without a warning in some cases - especially where there are serious risks, clear legal breaches or repeat issues’,” Phil Turtle, director of Landlord Licensing & Defence, explains. “In plain terms: councils no longer need to warn you before they fine you.”

Turtle says councils are now operating under a fundamentally different enforcement regime.

Framework

Under the previous framework, some would typically issue a warning or advisory notice before escalating to formal action – but that safety net has now been removed.

Penalties now reach £7,000 for certain minor breaches and up to £40,000 for the most serious offences, and multiple fines can be issued simultaneously where multiple breaches are identified.

The new regime also introduces many new tenancy-related offences, as well as prohibitions on tenant discrimination which are areas many landlords have not yet had the opportunity to fully understand, let alone comply with.

Arithmetic

"What councils are not advertising is the brutal arithmetic of the enforcement timeline once a formal notice is issued,” he adds. “By the time a formal enforcement notice has been printed, processed, and delivered through the postal system, typically taking three to four days, and a landlord has actually opened and read it, the clock has often already been running for the better part of a week.

"The response window given to landlords is, in most cases, just 14 days from the date of the notice, meaning that in practice, landlords may find themselves with as few as six to seven working days to locate specialist legal support, brief a professional representative, gather evidence of compliance, and prepare a formal response.”

Turtle suggests landlords should understand their obligations now, get compliance records in order, and know who to call before you need them.

‍