Rent Arrears and making a Possession Claim
Possession Claim
Attwells Solicitors can assist you in navigating these challenges. We offer expert legal advice and support for possession claim proceedings, helping you recover possession of your property swiftly and efficiently.
What is a possession claim?
Possession Claim proceedings are every landlord’s worst nightmare.
Your property has been let, and you have received the first few rent payments. Everything seemed to be going fine until suddenly, without notice, the payments stopped. The tenants stop returning your calls and won’t respond to your letters.
This situation can be aggravated by mortgage repayments being due and your letting agent not working fast enough to resolve this matter.
The key objective for a landlord is to recover possession of their property as quickly as possible and to minimize the rent lost. Attwells can help you achieve this. We will work swiftly to resolve the matter.
We offer fixed fees for Possession Claim proceedings, enabling you to control costs.
What is the possession claim process?
- Issuing Notice: We will serve your tenant the appropriate Section 21 or Section 8 notice.
- Application to Court: We will prepare and issue your court claim, including the necessary court fee.
- Review Hearing: This includes scheduling a review hearing after the claim is issued. Next, the judge reviews the claim paperwork to decide if it will proceed to a substantive hearing or if it can be determined immediately. Finally, we prepare a trial bundle, including a witness statement, and make ourselves available to the judge for any questions.
- Substantive Hearing: We prepare an updated witness statement and instruct an advocate to present your claim to the judge. If scheduled, both parties must attend the hearing.
- Bailiff Action: If tenants do not leave by the court-ordered date, we will instruct a county court bailiff to perform the physical eviction.
Throughout the process, Attwells Solicitors will provide expert guidance and support to ensure a smooth and efficient resolution. For more information regarding our fees and disbursements, please click here.
What documents are required for a Section 8 Claim:
- Relevant tenancy agreements
- Rent Statement showing rent demanded and paid for the last 2 years
- Info on the tenants’ circumstances- i.e. whether they have any dependents are in receipt of social benefits, whether benefits are being paid to the landlord to cover arrears, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tenants
- Deposit Protection Certificate
What documents are required for a Section 21 Claim & Section 21 Accelerated Claim
- Relevant tenancy agreements
- Rent Statement showing rent demanded and paid for the last 2 years
- Information on the tenants’ circumstances- i.e. whether they have any dependents are in receipt of social benefits, whether benefits are being paid to the landlord to cover arrears, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tenants
- Deposit Protection Certificate
- Prescribed Deposit Information
- Gas Safety Certificate
- EPC
- How to Rent Guide
