The Residential Landlords Association on-line help centre was put to the test when a member came unstuck trying to gain a court order for the possession of his property via Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988.

The London landlord experienced problems with a tenant, over a number of months, including £2,000 rent arrears, damage to the property and subletting without authority. Having decided not to pursue a case to recover the unpaid rent she applied, through the courts, to take possession of her house in Stratford, East London.

“The series of events had caused me nothing but grief and I just wanted them out,” she said.

She made application to the court but soon received notification that her eviction notice was invalid as her request for possession was dated 18th March rather than 13th March – the last day of the monthly tenancy agreement.

“I was very confused, a date for the court hearing had been set but they had already told me the notice was void, I didn’t know if it was worth attending or if I should just pull out and start the whole process again,” she added.

The landlord contacted the RLA via the new on-line help centre and requested advice on the case. She went on: “The advice I received was so clear and specific that I was able to make reference to it at the court hearing and secure a Possession Order for my property. Both judges had misunderstood the law but without the advice from the RLA I would not have been confident in attending the hearing and arguing my case. It was immensely helpful to have the benefit of the RLA’s experience and understanding of Section 21 and the processes involved in getting possession of a property. I am extremely grateful for their help.”

RLA Chairman, Chris Town said, “It’s great that we were able to help this member in securing her Possession Order but the case is not unusual. This is why we set up the personal checking service on the website earlier this year which has since become one of the association’s top three member benefits. Half of all court applications for possession notices, submitted by private landlords, fail - but by using our on-line tenancy management software and checking service, landlords reduce the risk of presenting erroneous possession summons to the courts and wasting considerable time and money.”