There are a number of types of notice your landlord may issue you with, the most important thing is not to panic. You should always seek independent legal advice straight away if you are served with any type of notice.
The main type of notice that you could receive are a Notice Requiring Possession, also referred to as a Section 21 Notice, or a Notice Seeking Possession, also referred to as a Section 8 notice.
Some tenants wrongly believe that being issued with one of these notices means they must give up Possession of their property by the date given on the notice. This is simply not true. These notices are the first step a landlord may take to try to get a Possession Order against you.
Your landlord must send you a valid notice. The validity of a notice can be checked by one of our specialist housing solicitors.
Your landlord must wait for the notice to expire before they can apply to the Court to issue a claim for possession of their property against you. You would receive court papers directly from the Court. This is something that Legal Aid is still available for and we would be able to assist you with this.
If your landlord manages to obtain a Possession Order, and this will only be granted at the end of the court process which can often be lengthy. You still do not have to leave your property on this date. Your landlord would have to apply to the Court for a Warrant of Eviction.
A Warrant of Eviction sets the date on which the bailiffs will attend your property and change the locks.
Dependant on the type of notice initially served on you, and the proceedings issued after this has expired, you may still be able to stop the eviction process at this stage.
If you are in receipt of benefits or on a low income you may be able to get Legal Funding to help pay for a legal representative to help you.
If you have received a notice or court papers and are not sure what you need to do you can contact us using our online enquiry facility and a member of our team would contact you to confirm what assistance is available.
By Laura Waby, Housing Law Graduate Paralegal
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