r/TenantsInTheUK

TLDR: does landlord have a responsibility to pay for non-cosmetic changes to windows in our flat to keep the temperature below 30 degrees.

We live in London in the top flat of a divided Victorian terrace. The Living room faces east and bedroom faces west. There are some stairs up from the bedroom to the living room, and above those stairs is a fairly large window with no blind. This means we sun directly into our house all afternoon and it heats up above 30 degrees in the heatwaves. It is not easily reachable as it sits high up above the stairs, otherwise we would just hang a blanket over it/fix a curtain.

Our bedroom also gets the sun all afternoon but we ensure we shut the window and blind (+ additional curtain we added) as necessary. However the window in our bedroom is a large casement window but with only a small top hung part that opens outwards. This means we get very little air flow in once it is cool enough to open windows in the evening.

Last heatwave it was too hot to sleep in the bedroom as it was still 32 degrees at 11pm. The flat was not going below 29 degrees at any hour of the day.

We’ve requested via our letting agent to add a blind to the window above the stairs as an initial fix. We have mentioned changing the window in the bedroom too.

The request for a blind has been refused. Apparently a builder (who knows our flat) said it was too awkward to add a blind to (which I thought was a builder’s job). However, the landlord said we’re allowed to fit it ourselves at our own cost.

Does the landlord have a responsibility to make these non-cosmetic fixes given the heat means our flat is not particularly habitable and we are unable to sleep in our bedroom at times due to the heat?

My landlady for the last 3 years has asked me to serve a 2-month notice period. I have a tenancy agreement signed in 2023 which states clearly that I have to serve a 28 day notice period (rounding off to a month). Sh insisted that it's 2 months, and i could leave earlier, if I replace myself with another tenant (putting the onus of finding a tenant on me). She asked me to list the property on spare room and other sites, as a suggestion, to 'help me out'.

Then I went into a deep dive into the internet. Leaving some references here, if it helps anyone else, caught in this same dilemma.

This applies if you have a Tenancy agreement with a shorter Notice period than 2 months (1 month in my case)

Actual legislation: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2025/26/section/20

SHELTER England: Shelter Legal England - Tenant ends an assured or assured shorthold tenancy //"Where the landlord and tenant agreed a notice period in writing before 1 May 2026, this remains valid after 1 May 2026."

NRLA: Renters’ Rights Act FAQs: Ending a tenancy | NRLA //the tenant will retain the already agreed notice period in the existing contract – which is likely to mean they should serve a one-month notice.// https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=879687585157919

TDS: The Renters’ Rights Act: What the implementation timeline means for the sector //Tenants must give 2 months’ notice to quit (unless their tenancy agreement allows less). Notice must be aligned with rent date.

My Deposits: "If a tenancy from before 1 May 2026 allows for the tenant to give less than two months’ notice to end it, then that shorter notice period will also be valid after 1 May 2026"
https://www.mydeposits.co.uk/content-hub/tenant-notice-periods-under-the-renters-rights-act-from-1-may-2026/

Sending love! Hope this helps

Hello, I'm looking for a little advise regarding my ex landlady. I moved out this week from a property that I have kept well maintained, repaired anything at my own cost when it has been required (there were a tonne of problems with a gas leak, water leak internal, water leak externally, broken chimney causing damp, broken boiler and more). The landlady asked me to paint, de-weed and deep clean the property before leaving as she had tenants moving in the next day. May I add everything has been amicable and was fine up until this last few weeks.

During the last month of my stay the key I had broke in the door lock due to the extreme heat we have been having. The estate agents and last tenants also confirmed the lock was broken but to keep at with it as the landlady has refused to repair lock or door in the past. I tried to call the land lady numerous times but got no response so a locksmith was contacted so I could gain access to the property to move my stuff out. The locksmith confirmed the lock should of been replaced years previous due to rotting and rust. I still couldn't get hold of the landlady so had to pay the bill for the locksmith so he could move on to his next emergency appointment (it was during the weekend). 10 minutes later she calls back and says she will pay the bill. An hour later she is accusing me or the locksmith of fraud, shes now not going to pay the bill and basically wants me to conduct a full blown fraud investigation on the locksmith (he was 100% legitimate and registered). There was a lot of back and forth and she is still yet to refund me the money. She threatened she was a non practicing solicitor and is just doing her due diligence (she was previously struck off due to imbezzlement claims and tax avoidance. I am unsure on the whole case as do not feel it is my place nor should I judge someone upon their past). She argued the bill amount stating I should of paid cash and not paid the VAT as it is something she can not claim and this is standard practice for the property managment company she runs. She tried texting the neighbour (who is also a landlord) and he agreed it needed refunding, it wasn't fraudulent as he witnessed everything and that the bill price looked correct for an emergency call out with full lock replacement. She still refused to refund the money and now cut contact with him. She has been silent for the last 2 weeks of my tenancy and blanking messages.

Come to this last week. I painted, deweeded, deepcleaned. Videos and took photos of the interior to prove how I had left the property. I made her aware on the last day I was finishing off and would leave her a key out to do her inspection. She replied asking for bank details so she could refund both amounts as soon as she has done her inspection (deposit was not put into a deposit scheme but instead has been sat in her account). I messaged that evening to thank her for letting me rent her home, I'd left a key and look forward to hearing from her regarding inspection. She ignored this message. I messaged again to confirm she had retrieved the keys and advised I'd left the other keys with an agent as requested, she read and ignored this message too. I messaged again to check she recieved my message and has got the keys for the inspection, she finally replied just stating yes thank you.

I know a relative of the new tenants and they have advised they're not due to move in yet so this feels like a ploy to get me to do everything that was the landladies responsibility before I moved out.

So far I am 3 weeks past having to pay the locksmith with no refund. I am also now worried I will lose my deposit also due to how she is reacting and ignoring any attempts of communication regarding both amounts of money. I'm worried if anyone could give some current advise on next steps who may of been in a similar situation with disputing regarding money due to be returned with the deposit not being put into a scheme.

Me and my friend are moving into a new flat, and we asked for new mattresses, but one of the ones the landlord provided is obviously not new and has stains on it, and the other one is brand new but very uncomfortable.

Would it be reasonable for us to just buy new mattresses and throw away the current ones without informing the landlord as long as we just leave them behind when we leave the flat? We know it's our loss of money, but we don't want to get into an uncomfortable situation with the landlord. Also, we are worried that even if we demand for the new ones, they won't be any better

Hi! I need some advice.

The flat I'm currently renting was originally rented under my company's name. When my family arrived in the UK, I decided to take over the tenancy and become responsible for paying the rent myself. I contacted the letting agency, and they issued a new tenancy agreement in my name.

Here's the problem: I believe the letting agency had previously sent my company a rent increase notice about three months earlier. However, when they prepared my new tenancy agreement, they mistakenly left the rent at the old amount instead of updating it.

Now they are insisting that my wife be added as a joint tenant, which would require a new tenancy agreement, and they want to increase the rent in that new contract. It feels like they are using this as a way to correct their mistake.

What are my rights in this situation, and what can I do?

England here

Hello
I rent through an agency. 3 bed house with 2 kids here. We’ve had a little leak patch of mould spores growing in our children’s shared bedroom so contacted agency. They sent a plumber round. Went into the loft. No lose pipes but few holes in our roof. But she is fairly sure it is asbestos room. So water is coming through the open tiles through the asbestos room and landing on our ceilings causing mould. It’s not really bad but hearing asbestos has kind of sent me into a spin. My grandmother died of asbestos cancer and was part of a lawsuit against her workplace

Where do my legality’s lie? Is the stuff in my loft ready to throw to the tip? Do they have to seal the loft? Do they have to remove it? In all honestly I feel like they might serve us notice. They wanted to sell before and now this might be the final thing. But there is nothing in my town, and three towns around to rent. My children go to school here

I don’t know what to do or what rules my landlord need to follow

Any advice thanks

Hi I am reposting here for advice. Throwaway.

I’ve lived in my house for 2 years.

When I moved in the stair carpet was loose and the landlord didn’t fix it - I asked him at move in and he said he wouldn’t be fixing it. About 6 months ago I fell down the stairs because of the loose carpet and I spilt coffee down the wall.

I’m now moving out. I tried to clean the wall but it is papered with ancient wood chip and painted over and I’ve removed some of the paint with the magic eraser.

If I try to spot paint the patches and it shows as a different colour will I lose my deposit?

The landlord has told me before that he never gives anyone their deposit back and I really want to get it back but I’m not sure what the rules are.

The house is clean and tidy but it wasn’t in good decorative order when I moved in.

It also has no heating except for one electric heater which he expected me to move from room to room and I believe that means it may qualify as unfit for human habitation? The estate agent who was out to look at it on Tuesday for re-letting it said it was and I don’t really know what the implications of that are. It has been the coldest house I ever lived in. I bought extra heaters myself but the winter electric bills were enormous.

Thank you for any help you are able to give me.

I viewed a flat in London that I actually really like. Good location, good size and the rent is fair for the building.

The issue is that when I viewed it, the flat was in a pretty tired state. The landlord has only recently bought it and, when my offer was accepted, the agent emailed me a “final breakdown of terms agreed” which included agreed terms to replace carpets, replace mattress, replace dining chairs, make sure all appliances are tested and work (including heating), small joinery alignments around the property, and a full professional clean (including the sofa).

The carpet replacement was actually offered by the landlord rather than requested by me.

I paid the holding deposit, passed referencing and have now been sent the tenancy agreement. However, none of the above works are mentioned in the tenancy agreement itself.

My concern is that I sign a legally binding tenancy now, then move in and find half the works have not been done. I understand I could potentially pursue the landlord for breach of the written agreement/email, but realistically I don't want to spend the start of my tenancy arguing about carpets and repairs.

I have asked the agent to confirm the works will be completed before commencement and that the inventory will be prepared after the works and cleaning.

Would you consider it reasonable for me to also ask for the already agreed works to be recorded in a signed addendum to the tenancy agreement?

Landlord apparently had a bad experience with the previous tenant and has therefore been more cautious than usual with my application. I have also had a bad experience with a previous tenancy, so I feel like it is fair for me to want the agreed terms clearly documented before signing.

Am I overthinking this, or would you refuse to sign until the agreed works are formally recorded?

I’ve recently moved to a flat near where I live, the rent is £50 cheaper pcm (and the landlord wanted to increase the price) and the move will cost me £150. So the I’ll be saving money, but I got the keys I felt an instant regret. I noticed scuffs and scratches and some broken things around the new flat that I hadn’t noticed before.

Is this normal? Have you felt this? How do I make the flat look tidier and have a new feel for it? Any advice on how to clean sofas and headboards? And how do I fix skirting boards?

Single mum of 2 in private rental. Work 2 jobs. Rent is increasing by £300. I’m just wondering what are the options for when it’s genuinely unaffordable? There’s no other private rentals available. Has anyone else been in this situation and give me some advice on what they did? N.I

So my tenancy concluded on the 31st May, around 5 days after that I got an email from the letting agent stating that they’re looking at charging from my deposit for “maintenance, cleaning and repair” (even though I deep cleaned lol) and they requested my bank details to return the deposit. They also stated that they would provide a breakdown of these costs. I emailed them back with my details and said I would appreciate a full breakdown of the costs. What followed was absolute silence. I emailed them back a week later asking for a response / breakdown of costs - nothing. I emailed again 5 days after that - nothing. I called them 3 times (within working hours) no answer. I emailed other departments within the agency - nothing.

I can’t find my tenancy protection scheme number but I do have an email from the day I sent it off saying it was protected. I searched the database for it and nothing came up. It’s now over a month since the end of my tenancy and I’m waiting on a deposit return of £1,600. Just short of going into the office and demanding them face to face, what are my next steps? I can’t get anywhere with the protection agency because I have no clue what the details are for it. This is supposed to be a reputable company in leeds but it’s honestly been horrendous. Please help!

I was served a section 8 notice, but my landlord wants me to serve him two months notice during the four months of his notice period. So with the new RRA, I'll basically have to stay until the last day, or one month before the last day (as I'm not serving notice the day I got it, which was a rent day).

Do i really have to give notice of two months from a rent day during the section 8 notice period, or can I just leave? He wants to move in he says.

UK England

Is it valid to serve a section 21 (15th April 2026, ending June 27th) during a fixed term AST, with no break clause, due to end Feb 2027 ?

I live with my mate and we were planning to move out. To take advantage of the RRA. So gave notice ahead of May, the landlord accepted our intention to move out.

Long story short, the place we were moving to fell through, and as we still had the keys, we decided to stay put. And ask the landlord for more time, in order to find somewhere else. We thought it would be fine as we hadn’t surrendered possession and there hadn’t been any viewings.

The landlord refused.

However, looking back the landlord had sent us an email with a section 21 attached in April.

Reading through the legislation, it seems a deed of surrender would have been the correct document to sign. And the section 21 is invalid.

I want to confirm if I’m correct in this case?

So I am moving out of my rental property after four years, it was already a periodic / rolling tenancy before Renter’s Rights came into effect from May 1st. I gave my notice in line with when I pay my rent.

I’ve done a lot of research on this sub and I’m aware it’s a common issue. Renters rights’ guidance only refers to fixed term tenancies turning into periodic and requiring two months, but not existing periodic tenancies. After I’d secured my new place, I spoke to CAB and they said I only have to give one month per my contract and the guidance that periodic notices are still valid after May 1st. So I gave in my notice last week, but my letting agent and landlord are claiming it’s two months’ and are not budging no matter what I say.

I even went into the office in person to speak to them and when I mentioned what CAB said, they called them “idiots”, which is pretty telling. I haven’t backed down and have stayed firm that I’m handing in notice in line with my contract and my move out date will be July 31st. I also put together an email to them outlining the guidance from multiple sources that support my dispute (NRLA, Shelter, Unison, MyDeposits etc) and the agency staff member fired back saying I’m “categorically 100% wrong”.

I also told them I’d never received the Renters Rights Information Sheet (which I know they get fined for) and they sent a receipt saying they emailed it to me but I’ve checked my email high and low (spam, deleted etc) and can’t find no such thing. So sounds like it never came through or they photoshopped the receipt to save face.

I’m moving into my new place immediately after so I don’t want to be paying an extra month of rent. I’m also worried they’ll try and retain my deposit because of it so I’m at loss of what to do. From the research I’m done it seems to be a bit of a grey area legally. At the moment I’m being reasonable and staying firm on my decision, and they’re advertising my room from the date after I leave so hopefully all will be fine if it gets filled quickly.

But is there anything else I can do or advice anyone could give? I was hoping they’d drop it once I sent that letter but they just doubled down. Seems like a lot of people are in this same predicament and they’re trying to rinse me for every penny.

Hi all,

Just before the renters rights deadline my landlord served me with a Section 21 for 28/08/26 (based in London England). He has let me know he’s listed the flat for re-let available from this date so likely not selling.

I know this is invalid due to the court deadline for evictions via Section 21 being the end of July. However i’m in a lucky position to be possibly moving into a shared ownership purchase estimated at the end of July/August time for completion.

Do i have to serve two months notice or can i leave under the Invalid Section 21?

Note: the landlord has not contacted me about the validity of the section 21 and nor have i contacted him

Update: the landlord just requested to do a viewing so presumably he’s sticking to the section 21’s timeline

Hi all,

I had my lawyers draft my defence yday and they have used the following as defence and counterclaim:

- I was never given terms and conditions for the deposit when I moved in

- the prescribed information was never signed by the landlord or agent

- the first gas safety cert did not include the landlord address or agents address it had a line strike in the address box

- they never gave me the new “how to rent” that updated in 2023 - even in the claim bundle the old 2020 one was added

Do these reasons make a section 21 invalid?

Landlord used accelerated procedure.

Thanks in advance x

I've found a place that recently became available, it's cheaper than my current place but just as well furnished and what not, not even that far from work. But because of these new laws I have to give 2 months notice. What landlord/property manager is going to let me move in October and they lose out on 1 months of rent. Is there a way around this or am I not thinking about it properly?

Sorry just a small rant

Edit: My current landlord says if i were to give notice now my tenancy won't end until Sept 30 The New place i found is available from Aug 3rd. By the time my tenancy is done it's likely that someone will have taken that new place I'm looking at.

I’m due to get married, and back in June me and my partner secured a flat, passed referencing, paid a holding fee and everything. We were good to go for July move in.

However, last week we were told that the landlord has pulled out due to external factors, and therefore we cannot move in. We got a refund.

Now, we are flat hunting again, with our wedding in 3 weeks and we are viewing every other day, sending offers, providing everything but some estate agents don’t get back, or update you.

We put an offer down for a flat we liked and provided all our documents and we haven’t heard back from him. I sent him an email but nothing.

For context. We both work full time, earning over £80,000 combined, children free etc and have all our documents ready.

I’m stressing out so much and it has caused issues. I don’t want to pester or bother the estate agent but we are running out of time.

I might be sensitive and emotional, but this is my first time renting but not his.

I don’t know what to do!

So this is getting really complicated :-(

Our LL wants to end our tenancy due to her headlease restrictions that do not allow HMOs, and is currently seeking a legal route. However, one tenant wants to leave, and I was potentially looking at a place. Given the new rules for notice to quite dates lining up with rent periods, if I gave notice on Monday I would not be able to leave till October 3rd (end of rent period), because we have just passed the start of our current rent period in July, this feels ludicrous, and makes it impossible to give notice.

I also wanted to come to an agreement to leave with the LL (instead of giving formal notice), but as it is a Joint tenancy HMO, they cannot simply take me off the contract, and I am not sure how it would even work if the LL agrees to let me out of the joint tenancy earlier and reduces the liability for rent for the remaining tenants? They will likely agree, but how would it work in practice? The TDS confirmed my deposit should be able to be partially returned, but this involves a new 'protected amount' being insured with TDS, and I don't know if that would require a new contract, given our current one states the amount of the deposit. Obviously the LL who wants us out will not sign a new contract.

It all feels like such a mess. And even when I am able to get viewings and offers, I can't take them.