Generation Rent has claimed the latest Renters Reform Bill amendments would lead to victims of domestic abuse being trapped into tenancies for six months.
On Thursday, 18th April, the government published the latest amendments to the bill to be considered at the report stage, scheduled for 24th April, one of which proposes that tenants would not be able to give two month’s notice to leave until they have been in a property for at least four months.
While the government confirmed it is considering exemptions which would allow tenants to leave within the first six months of the tenancy in certain circumstances — such as the death of a tenant, domestic abuse or significant hazards in the property — Generation Rent criticized this amendment, calling this a ‘tenant trap‘ .
“The ‘tenant trap’ threatens to force victims of abuse to remain in homes with their abusers, unable to flee or move away. Because they will be legally liable to pay the rent on the property for six months, victims and their children may have to remain in extremely dangerous situations, at the mercy of their perpetrators,” said the organisation in a statement.
Generation Rent claimed that, due to the expensive and lengthy process tenants would be required to go through to get out of their contracts in a reasonable period of time, these rule exemptions would be rendered “almost useless;almost.
“If victims of abuse want to get out of this ‘tenant trap’ they will need to go through the courts to do it, putting the onus on survivors to fight to be free of tenancies causing them direct harm. This is completely unacceptable and must not be allowed to happen.
Generation Rent is now calling on the government to stop the plans to introduce this amendment.
Other amendments tabled to the Bill ahead of its report stage include proposals to:
