Landlords have to follow certain eviction procedures set out by law to get their property back from a tenant. Illegally evicting or harassing a tenant is a crime. As a landlord or as a tenant, you both have rights.

At public Advice we try and help both landlords and tenants to understand their rights and the processes involved.

The aim is to offer you help and guidance to your questions and explain how to apply for the process your self.

Here is some information which may help answer your questions briefly right now. If you are a landlord and have served notice on your tenant to leave the property and they do not leave when the notice period expires, you must send your tenant a 'notice of intention to seek possession'. This lets the tenant know that you plan to apply to the court for a possession order to evict them if they do not leave.

You must give the notice of intention to your tenant before you can apply for a possession order.

If you apply to the court for a possession order, the court will decide whether or not to evict your tenant. If it grants the order, it will either require the tenant to leave on a specific date or will 'suspend' the order. Suspension of the possession order by the court means that the tenant can stay in the property as long as they continue to meet certain conditions set out by the court.

If your tenant still refuses to leave when you have a possession order, you must apply for a warrant for eviction from the county court. The court will arrange for bailiffs to remove the tenant from the property.

If you are a tenant and the court has sent you a copy of your landlord's application for a possession order, you should contact a legal adviser immediately. You have 14 days from the day you receive the copy of the application to file a defence to the court.

It is a crime for landlords to harass or to try to force a tenant out of the property without following court procedures. Tenants that have been harassed or illegally evicted have a right to claim damages through the court.

Further Advice:

It is advisable that you call Public Advice first so you fully understand your rights and the correct procedures you have to follow.

It is advisable that if you require a solicitor to represent you then you use the larger solicitor firms to represent you. The reason is - They have the right staff who have many years of experience between them to allow you to receive the best advice. However, this is not always possible for many due to the costs of the larger firms. At Public Advice we have linked up with various larger firms who will offer their advice at reduced costs based on the volumes of business we provide to them.For more information please call us on 01923 85 42 02.