The Renters’ Rights Bill is expected to fuel a surge in tenancy disputes following a 20% rise last year.

Inventory Base reports that the annual number of disputes increased to 42,180 during 2023, the second highest number seen in the last decade; ten years ago, the UK saw an estimated 27,035 disputes each year.

Its data reveals that tenancy disputes have been steadily rising except during the pandemic period when 2021 and 2022 recorded drops of -5% and -13% respectively because tenants were benefiting from protection measures including eviction bans.

It is also expected that the number of tenant disputes seen across the rental market will rise further by the end of 2025. It’s estimated that by the end of this year, disputes will reach 42,542, followed by a further 3.5% increase in 2025, says source data from TDS.

Flawless

Siân Hemming-Metcalfe (pictured), operations director at Inventory Base, says it’s vital that landlords and letting agents implement “flawless practices” in deposit protection and inventories.

“A proper inventory – one that accurately and fastidiously records all existing damage at the start of a tenancy – provides landlords with ultimate protection when it comes to tenants who use the disputes process to try and avoid paying for any damage they have caused,” she explains.

“Far too often, lacklustre inventories mean that landlords end up paying for damage caused by the tenant, simply because they cannot prove what the condition was before the tenant moved in.”

With the upcoming ban on Section 21, those disputes that need court proceedings to be resolved will only take longer, says Hemming-Metcalfe.