Further Insecurity for Renters following Court of Appeal Decision
PRESS RELEASE: Trecarrell House Limited v Patricia Rouncefield [2020] EWCA CIV 760
Today, 18 June 2020, the Court of Appeal handed down judgement in Trecarrell House Limited v Patricia Rouncefield. The case was heard on 29 January 2020 in front of Lord Justice Patten, Lady Justice King and Lord Justice Moylan. A copy of the judgement is available to download here.
The key question in the matter was whether or not a landlord could evict a tenant using the no-faults eviction process (section 21 Housing Act 1988) if he had not served them a Gas Safety Record prior to the tenant occupying the property. The Court of Appeal were also asked to consider whether or not a Gas Safety Check done out of time, as they are meant to be done annually, would prevent a Landlord from evicting his tenant using section 21.
The Court of Appeal concludes as follows:
- New Tenants need to be served with a Gas Safety Record at the beginning of their tenancy.
- As long as the Gas Safety Record is provided to the tenant prior to service of the section 21 notice, the notice will be valid.
- There is no time limit for serving existing tenants with a Gas Safety Record.
The position as to whether or not a Gas Safety Check done out of time is valid is still unclear.
Arfan Bhatti, the Solicitor for Ms Rouncefield, of Oliver Fisher Solicitors said the following:
“Gas Safety affects a large number of tenants across the county. The effect of this judgement means there is little real deterrent against landlords who do not comply with their duties under the Gas Safety Regulations as HSE prosecutions for breaches, unfortunately, remain rare.”
Oliver Fisher Solicitor are seeking permission to appeal.
Ms Rouncefield instructed our Arfan Bhatti who was assisted by our Billy Clerkin. For further information or any queries please contact Arfan Bhatti at arfan@oliverfisher.co.uk or by calling 0203 219 0145.
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