Seven out of 10 landlords do not understand what they have to do under the controversial new Right to Rent rules requiring them to check the immigration status of their tenants, according to the Residential Landlords Association.
From 1 February, all private landlords in England must check new tenants have the right to be in the UK before renting out their property as part of the government’s wider reforms to the immigration system.
Under the new rules, landlords who fail to check a potential tenant’s legal documents which allow them to live in the UK could receive a fine of up to £3,000 per tenant. The scheme requires landlords make checks 28 days before the start of a new tenancy.
David Smith, policy director for the RLA, said: “The government argues that it’s Right to Rent plans form part of a package to make the UK a more hostile environment for illegal immigrants. The evidence shows that it is creating a more hostile environment for good landlords and legitimate tenants.
“Landlords are damned if they do and damned if they don’t. Fearful of a fine they face two difficult ways forward.”
According to a survey of over 1,500 landlords by the RLA, the lack of information from the government is creating confusion about how landlords are expected to carry out the checks.
The survey found that nine out of 10 landlords have received no information from the government, while 44% of landlords will only rent to those with documents that are familiar to them.
The RLA said that landlords were unlikely to rent to people who could not easily prove their residency, which could cause serious problems for the estimated 17% of UK nationals that do not have a passport.
The RLA is calling on the government to undertake a more thorough evaluation of the impact of Right to Rent before rolling it out across the country.
The evaluation of the pilot scheme noted that there was only limited evidence that it was actually managing to deter illegal immigrants from seeking to access rented accommodation.
“They can play it safe, and take a restrictive view with prospective tenants, potentially causing difficulties for the 12 million UK citizens without a passport. Alternatively, they may target certain individuals to conduct the checks, opening themselves up to accusations of racism,” said Smith.
“The government’s own evaluation of its pilot scheme noted that there was only limited evidence that the policy is achieving its objectives. Given the considerable problems it will create for tenant-landlord relations it’s time for the government to think again,” he added.
Richard Lambert, chief executive of the National Landlords Association, said: “It is already best practice for landlords to conduct thorough checks on prospective tenants before offering a tenancy so it shouldn’t be a problem to work in Right to Rent checks.
“Landlords will need to check original ID documents of their tenants and to retain copies as proof that a check has been carried out. Landlords and agents must also bear in mind that they will need to undertake further checks if their tenant only has a limited time to remain – either after 12 months or when their leave expires, whichever is later – which means keeping on top of your obligations.
“It’s vital landlords familiarise themselves with what they will need to do to properly check their tenants in order to steer clear of breaking the law come February, especially because those who fail to do so could wind up in jail.
“NLA advises landlords to look at the Home Office’s guidance on unlawful discrimination as well as the Code of Practice, which includes a list of acceptable documents to use to verify a tenant’s immigration status and demonstrates how to avoid breaching the law.”
Details of the new checks that need to be made by landlords can be found here.
