The Renters’ Rights Act 2025: Prior Notice

Our guide to the Renters' Rights Act 2025 can be downloaded for free:  The Renters' Rights Act 2025

Our webinar on the Renters' Rights Act 2025 can be watched here:  Renters Rights Act 2025 - what you need to know.   

Our hub bringing together all of our Renters' Rights Act 2025 material is here:  The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 hub

This is a deeper dive into the new obligations on landlords to provide Prior Notice to tenants of certain circumstances where the landlord might want to recover possession of the property. 

From 1 May 2026 landlords under the Renters' Rights act 2025 will need to give their tenants Prior Notice that a particular ground for possession may be relied upon.  If no Prior Notice is given and the landlord later relies upon that ground for possession of the property, then the landlord could face an initial fine of up to £7,000.   

This requirement also applies to some existing tenancies. 

Terminology 

A number of the Prior Notice grounds relate to a situation where a landlord lets the property to a tenant, who then goes on to let some or all of that property to another tenant.   Here’s a guide to the terminology:

Term	Definition
Superior Landlord	Owns the property and has granted a tenancy to the Intermediate Tenant.
Intermediate Tenancy	The tenancy between the Superior Landlord and the Intermediate Tenant.
Intermediate Tenant	The tenant of the Intermediate Tenancy  The Intermediate Tenant then sublets either whole or part of the property to a Sub-tenant.
Sub-tenancy	The tenancy between the Intermediate Tenant and the Sub-tenant.
Sub-tenant	The tenant of the Sub-tenancy.  The Intermediate Tenant is the Sub-tenant’s landlord. There is no direct relationship between the Sub-tenant and the Superior Landlord.

Prior Notices 

What are they and what do they apply to?

The Renters Rights Act 2025 requires landlords to give Prior Notice to their tenants that the landlord may rely upon certain grounds for possession. 

This existed for some grounds previously, but was not an issue in the era of section 21 notices. 

Under the new rules, the grounds for possession relevant to a private landlord (not a social landlord) that require prior notice are 

• Where a private landlord is housing full-time students in an HMO (House in Multiple Occupation)
• Where an employee is provided with housing (NB not a service occupant) and their employment has come to an end.
• Where there are specific types of agricultural Intermediate Tenancy with a Sub-tenancy 

• Where the landlord requires the property to house an agricultural employee.

   

These are the Prior Notice grounds from 1 May 2026 (excluding social housing grounds): 

When does Prior Notice need to be given to the tenant?

The new Prior Notice rules will apply to some existing tenancies and all new tenancies from 1 May 2026. 

• If an existing tenancy is wholly or partly written there is no obligation on a landlord to serve Prior Notice.  A landlord will only need to serve an Information Sheet on the tenant. 

• If an existing tenancy is unwritten Prior Notice will need to be given by 31 May 2026.  A landlord should provide their tenant with Prior Notice when serving the Written Statement. 

For our deeper dive on the Information Sheet and Written Statement, which includes suggestions as to how to deal with these in practice, see: The Renters' Rights Act 2025 - the new requirement to provide an Information Sheet or Written Statement - Burges Salmon

For details of the content of the Information Sheet and the Written Statement see:  The Renters' Rights Act 2025 - Information Sheets and Written Statements published with a deadline: 31 May 2026 - Burges Salmon

What is the penalty if a landlord does not provide Prior Notice?

If the landlord fails to give Prior Notice and later relies upon one of the grounds for possession, then this should not prevent the landlord from obtaining possession but fines can be imposed of up to a maximum of £7,000 for the first breach.

Written with Ryan Small and Lucy Mostyn

This is a complex area and now is the time to be getting to grips with the new rules and their implications.