Last month, the Welsh regulations for coronavirus were extended, keeping the notice period for most eviction notices at 6 months until the 31 of December 2021.
This applies to all notices, for example, section 21 and section 8 notices, apart from those based on Anti-social behaviour or domestic violence grounds, which are at pre-pandemic levels.
The reason for the extension is to ensure that during a time when case numbers and hospitalisations are increasing and the virus remains a serious threat to public health, landlords will continue to give increased notice to tenants before they can issue proceedings for possession.
The effect will be to delay evictions meaning that:
- fewer people will face eviction into homelessness at a time when this might exacerbate the spread of the virus
- when local authorities are less able to respond to these situations.
The Tenancy Hardship Fund
If you have a tenant who is in arrears, it may be a good idea to direct him to the Tenancy Hardship Fund. The fund offers grants to tenants who are in arrears during the pandemic in Wales.
Note: this is only in Wales, England’s notice periods have returned to pre-pandemic levels.
