Date Published 01 March 2024
Right to Rent fines have increased as of 13th February 2024. This will implement large increases in the maximum fines that can be imposed on Landlords for renting property to irregular migrants, as originally announced by the Home Office in August 2023.
The penalties have increased from £80 per lodger and £1,000 per occupier for a first breach up to £5,000 per lodger and £10,000 per occupier. Repeat breaches will be up to £10,000 per lodger and £20,000 per occupier, up from £500 and £3,000. Current rules mean that as well as facing a heavy fine, Landlords could face potential imprisonment for failure to check the occupier's right to rent status.
Landlords understand these fines will be a massive worry, especially for non-professional accidental Landlords who may not use a professional letting agent to carry out the Right to Rent checks on their behalf. Also to overseas tenants concerned that Landlords will be more reluctant to rent property to those whose Right to Rent checks might be more complicated.
At Adams Estates we understand that this is a legal obligation to make sure we find Landlords the right tenants and ensure those without lawful immigration status cannot proceed into the private rental sector. Recently we have started using an external referencing company which conducts in depth assessments into a tenant after they have placed down a holding deposit. From this we can see a report of previous Landlord references, employment references etc. and most importantly whether the tenant has a Right to Rent.
