The chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association has set out landlord concerns at the slow processing of possession cases in the current court system.

Ben Beadle, addressing the Renters Rights Bill committee in the Commons, said that whilst the association was broadly supportive of many features in the Bill, it was deeply concerned about court reform, especially prior to the inevitable abolition of Section 21.

Beadle told MPs: “I appreciate that others might have viewed this as a delaying tactic in the past, but the reality is that we are waiting seven months on average to get possession of our homes, and that is for a fast-track situation with almost no proof needed. When we move to a section 8 ground, that will require more resource and more scrutiny, quite rightly, but without investment in the court system we will not deliver what either renters or landlords need.

“In a survey of over 1,400 of our members, 60% of landlords said they were less confident or not at all confident that they will remain a landlord without suitable court reform. That declines to 37% if suitable court reforms are enacted. Our argument has always been that this is about confidence, striking the balance and giving support to responsible landlords, as well as delivering for renters.

“The other area we have seen is that landlords will be provided with robust grounds for repossession; I may have missed them, but I do not see the doubling of notice for serious rent arrears or increasing the rent arrears threshold from two to three months as sending the right message or as fair and proportionate. Those tenancies will largely fail, whether it is two months, three months or six months, quite frankly.”

Beadle told MPs that the NRLA was broadly supportive of a form of something like a pre-action protocol where responsible landlords can help to signpost tenants to manage their arrears, as happened during the pandemic. 

“I worry that not addressing that point will send the wrong message. We have an average of 21 people chasing every home, so whatever nip and tuck we make around here, whether landlords are leaving or not, that is only going to worsen as confidence decreases” he added.

Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook, attending the same committee, asked Beadle what performance indicators landlords would accept to show ‘progress’ at making the court system fit for purpose with regard to possession hearings.

Beadle told MPs: “It is incumbent on us to define what ‘the courts are ready’ means in practice. For us, there are two or three areas that could be improved. 

“First, we are getting many reports of applications that are made to the court actually running out of time because they have not been processed in time. You have the admin part of the sausage factory at the beginning, because it is not so much about the number of judges. I sit as a magistrate and I often sit around waiting for cases to come to me and to be input into the new common platform. There are delays built into the administrative process that cause frustration.

“The other issue we have seen is the wait for a bailiff. Once you have patiently waited for your court hearing date and you have possession, that will be what it will be, but waiting for a bailiff can take months in some areas. Sometimes there are really poor excuses – earlier this year, we saw the stab-proof vests not being available. If it is a high-risk area, you need somebody waiting out in the car and somebody on the door. London is predominantly a high-risk area, which is why we see such slow eviction timescales.”