"It is simply bizarre that the Government is failing to collect basic data on the performance of the rental appeals Tribunal"
- David Smith - Spector Constant & Williams
New information obtained under the Freedom of Information Act reveals that the Government has no data on how the Renters’ Rights Act will affect the Rent Appeals Tribunal. The Ministry of Justice confirmed to David Smith, partner at Spector, Constant and Williams, that it does not track the average time the Tribunal takes to process and rule on rent increase appeals.
The Act, due to take effect on 1 May next year, will allow tenants to challenge any rent increase that exceeds local market rates. However, the only way to determine if a proposed increase is above market levels is to take the case to the Tribunal.
Tenants face minimal risk in bringing cases, as:
Tribunal applications are free.
Rent cannot be increased beyond the landlord’s original proposal.
Any approved increase takes effect from the day the Tribunal rules, not from when the landlord initially proposed it, potentially delaying payment by months.
The Tribunal can defer an increase by up to two months to prevent hardship.
The Government has the authority to backdate rent increases if the system becomes “overwhelmed,” but it has not defined what constitutes being overwhelmed. The recent Freedom of Information response confirmed that the Government lacks the baseline data to assess the Act’s impact on the Tribunal.
Smith criticised the lack of preparation. “It is simply bizarre that the Government is failing to collect basic data on the performance of the rental appeals Tribunal. For all its talk of not wanting the system to be overwhelmed, without measuring the average time taken to process rent cases both now and in the future, there will be no way of knowing the impact the Renters’ Rights Act is actually having and what additional resources are required by the Tribunal to operate effectively.”
He added: “If ministers are serious about wanting their reforms to work, they need urgently to measure, and publish in full, baseline data on the performance of the Tribunal now. The Government should regularly publish this data to ensure everyone can see if, and when, the Tribunal starts to struggle with the anticipated massive increase in rent appeal cases it is asked to consider.”
