Banning Discrimination – Renters Rights Bill

The introduction of the Renters Rights Bill formerly known as the Tenant Reform Bill is looking to be introduced into the UK Rental Market at some point in 2025, ear marked as the Summer of 2025.

One of the points passed through the legislation bill is the ban on Discrimination.

What Does This Mean?

It means that landlords or agents a like do not have the right to discriminate on what tenants they choose. In previous times there has been a huge stigma against Housing Benefit or Universal Credit Tenants as it is known nowadays.

These Universal Credit Tenants are tenants or families that would receive money from the local authority and would not work as much as private tenants, they would receive certain benefits such as childcare, housing money to pay rent, disability benefits and other renumeration for living in the UK. In some cases, it is more lucrative for a tenant to not work than it would be for them to work so that they can claim their Universal Credit from the government.

In previous times landlords have put a stop to renting to tenants of the sort due to the fact that they could get a tenant with nothing to lose, a tenant without assets and without anything to lose could be a problem as sometimes properties deteriorate, rental payments do not get passed to the landlord and it is harder to remove a Universal Credit tenant from a property.

What Are The Legal Implications?

The new legislation makes it explicitly illegal to discriminate against benefit recipients or families with children, with fines of up to £7,000 for landlords found in violation of this rule.

This builds on previous court rulings that determined “No DSS” policies were already unlawful under the Equality Act 2010.

How Does This Impact Landlord Rights?

While landlords maintain the right to:

• Conduct thorough tenant referencing
• Verify affordability
• Make informed decisions based on credentials

They cannot implement blanket bans or refuse viewings based solely on benefit status.

Agents need to be wary too as there will be prosecution for letting agents should they also reject Housing Benefit, Universal Credit or DSS Tenants.

Landlords and Agents will be prohibited from putting a blanket ban on Universal Credit which could make an awkward conversation.

My question Would Be, How Can Anyone Prove It If Nobody Says It?

Realistically, how would a tenant know or prove this was the case. Most landlords will choose an agent that is on their side and not the governments, just like an accountant, but agents will still need to be wary of how they communicate before landing themselves in a sticky situation.

‘Truthfully, I understand why the government has imposed this rule, but putting it into action to target the homelessness crisis that it has created themselves will be a tough one to put into force.’

Government Support Measures

To address landlord concerns, the government is implementing several supportive measures:

• Working with insurance providers to address coverage concerns
• Improving welfare support information systems
• Enabling direct payments to landlords when necessary

Documentation Requirements

Landlords and agents should:

• Document their marketing and shortlisting process thoroughly
• Maintain clear records of tenant selection criteria
• Ensure decisions are based on objective factors rather than discriminatory policies

The rental market is evolving to become more inclusive and fairer. While some landlords may have concerns based on past experiences, the new legislation aims to balance tenant rights with landlord protections. The key to success will be thorough tenant referencing and robust tenancy agreements rather than relying on broad generalisations about benefit recipients.

The Housing Minister, Matthew Pennycook, has emphasised that attempts to circumvent these new regulations will not be tolerated, demonstrating the government’s commitment to enforcing these anti-discrimination measures.

Talking from personal experience of somebody who is a multi-landlord and has had an agency managing over 200 properties since 2013, we have housed Universal Credit tenants, but they were housed on a case by case basis.

To give you a personal story, I currently have a Part Housing Benefit tenant with her daughter in a property I own and personally picked her over a private tenant, it was the right decision, and she has been a dream, plus a clean freak too. But this goes down to choosing your tenant on skill, emotional intelligence but also looking at the right paperwork to obtain rent protection and legal cover. I believe the insurance side of things will be more important than ever.

The real question is, can an allegation be made by a tenant if a landlord is not refusing on the fact that he or she is Universal Credit, Housing Benefit or DSS or anything else they want to come up with or is it because they are not nice people, look dirty, dishevelled and don’t have their lives in order?

Is this also discrimination, nothing really is clear!

If you want or need help with your management property in Romford then give us a call on 01708909100 or email me personally on [email protected]