Skip to main content

One In Seven Tenants Break Tenancy Rules

1901 Hits
One In Seven Tenants Break Tenancy Rules

Tenancy agreements are being broken by one in seven renters breaching one or more rules according to Direct Line company. From its research it also claims that 11% of tenants were unaware of whether they had in fact broken any of the rules outlined in their agreement.

We suspect that the proportion is much higher - as many of us have 'management rules' relating to how tenants should live in and occupy a property and we know that 3 times out of 5 these are overlooked by tenants or never completely complied with - candles in rooms, smoking on the balcony, not switching the extractor off and so many others...

Anyway, according to their research, the top ten most common rules breached by tenants are:breached rules by tenants

The most common breach is not paying the rent on time, whilst keeping pets and smoking are also high on the list of offences. Landlords will slap the offending tenants with various measures, the most common being (52%) taking a sum of money from or sometimes all of the tenancy deposit.

Other measures taken by landlords are making tenants pay for any damage to the property or contents (22%), however only 4% were evicted.

21% of tenants admitted that that their landlord was unaware of any infringements..

Nick Breton, of the insurance company said: "The relationship a tenant has with their landlord can be crucial in the smooth running of a rented property. It is therefore of utmost importance for tenants to keep in touch with their landlords should anything arise that may be in breach of their rental agreement."

"Many landlords may be accommodating of requests to have a pet or to make changes to the property, but it is always safest to ask before doing anything to ensure that you are not breaking your contract in the process. Tenants who break the rules of their contract can face anything from the loss of their deposit to eviction, so for peace of mind, landlords should ensure they have a watertight legal contract in place to fall back on should anything happen to their property."

This ties in well with research just released and supported by the BPF, albeit focussed on the commercial sector, which shows that overall rental returns are higher where landlords pay attention to and achieve higher customer (tenant) satisfaction scores.

Tweet
Tenant Tax Is Lawful
Parking Zone Changes Will Hit Portsmouth Tenants

About the author

Martin Silman

Martin began his landlord journey 18 years ago, while working in an international role for a global telecommunications company. Since retiring he has extended his portfolio, which he manages with his wife, but has always focussed on the ‘small student HMO’ sector preferring to offer homes in the community for small groups to the more common ‘pack them in and take the money’ mentality. He has chaired the PDPLA for the past 9 years and has overseen the Associations transition from small local self-help group to a much larger and more professional institution which is recognised and listened to nationally. Alongside his PDPLA role, he also has leadership roles in a number of other local organisations – bringing his unique perspective, driving for change and increased use of technology while respecting the history that brought us here.

Related Posts