Unscrupulous landlords are illegally evicting tenants living close to the Olympic site in a bid to cash in on Olympic fuelled rents.
Many Londoners are looking forward to this summer’s Olympic Games with enthusiasm, but for some people it is turning into a housing nightmare.
In London boroughs close to the Olympics there are reports of tenants being illegally evicted by landlords eager to profit from the influx of people looking for accommodation during the Games.
With landlords able to obtain massively increased rents for short-term lets during the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Fisher Meredith says an increase in the number of evictions has been reported with some tenants in east London given just a week or two to leave.
The good news for these tenants is that they have considerable protection under the law. Most tenants cannot be asked to leave before a valid notice has been served, which must normally give them at least two months to move out. Even then, the landlord can only force the tenant to leave by obtaining a possession order and a bailiff’s warrant through the courts.
For a tenant facing an actual or threatened illegal eviction, help is available. A tenant can apply for an injunction and/or damages in the County Court and may be able to obtain an urgent order from the Court requiring the landlord to re-admit them to the property.
Assistance can be obtained from a solicitor specialising in landlord and tenant law.
Harassment and illegal eviction are also criminal offences and should be reported to the police, and the local council’s tenancy relations officer may be able to provide help.
“Although tenants do have legal protection, many don’t realise this and are being bullied into leaving. As we get closer to the Games and the demand for accommodation peaks we’re likely to see a rise in the number of landlords chancing their luck and trying to evict tenants” said Ann Bevington of Fisher Meredith LLP.
Fisher Meredith has a team of housing lawyers who are expert in landlord and tenant law. Anyone facing eviction can call the housing helpline on 0800 014 7445.
