How to Evict a Tenant for Not Paying the Rent

Recovering possession from a tenant in rent arrears is one of the most common possession scenarios. Under the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 the rent-arrears grounds were tightened — Ground 8 now requires three months’ arrears (up from two), with four weeks’ notice. This page sets out the procedure step by step.

Before serving any notice

Rent-arrears possession is one of the most common types of possession claim. It is also one of the most procedurally demanding. Before serving a Section 8 notice, work through the following:

Confirm the arrears figure

• Calculate the arrears as at today’s date and as at the projected notice service date.
• For Ground 8 (the mandatory rent-arrears ground), you need at least three months’ arrears (or 13 weeks where rent is paid weekly or fortnightly) at the date of service AND at the date of hearing.
• Universal Credit housing element — if the tenant is entitled to UC housing element and any unpaid amount is solely because the tenant has not yet received the payment, that amount must be excluded from the arrears figure. Ask the tenant for evidence of UC entitlement before serving notice.

Check your procedural compliance

• Deposit protected within 30 days of receipt? Prescribed information served? (Less critical for Section 8 than it was for Section 21, but still important to record.)
• Gas Safety Record (CP12) provided to tenant at start of tenancy and at each annual renewal?
• EPC, EICR, How to Rent guide all in order?
• Tenancy agreement available, signed, and reflective of the actual arrangement?

Have you communicated with the tenant?

Document every payment chase: emails, letters, texts. The court will look at the landlord’s conduct, particularly under discretionary grounds. Have you offered a payment plan? Has the tenant responded? Tenants in genuine financial hardship may benefit from a referral to Citizens Advice or to local authority discretionary housing payments.

Choosing the right grounds

Ground 8 — mandatory arrears

At least 3 months’ rent arrears at notice and at hearing. Mandatory means the court must grant possession if the ground is proved. Notice period: 4 weeks.

Ground 10 — discretionary, some arrears

Any arrears at notice and at hearing. Discretionary means the court may grant possession if reasonable. Useful where arrears fluctuate or where the landlord cannot rely on Ground 8 by the time of hearing.

Ground 11 — discretionary, persistent late payment

Tenant has persistently delayed paying rent that has become lawfully due. Useful for the chronic-late-payer who never quite reaches three months’ arrears but keeps the landlord chasing every month.

Plead all three together

Standard practice in arrears claims is to plead Grounds 8, 10, and 11 in the alternative. The notice covers the strongest ground (8), and if arrears drop below the 3-month threshold by the hearing date, the discretionary grounds remain available.

Drafting the notice

1. Use the new prescribed Section 8 notice form (effective from 1 May 2026).
2. Identify Grounds 8, 10, 11 (and any others relevant to your situation).
3. Set out the particulars: arrears figure as at the date of the notice, and the basis on which the figure is calculated.
4. Specify the notice period — for Ground 8 alone, 4 weeks; if other grounds with longer notice periods are included, use the longer period.
5. Set out the date on or after which proceedings can be commenced.
6. Sign and date.
7. Serve on every named tenant.

From notice to possession

1. Service. Recorded delivery or hand-delivery with proof. Email service is generally not sufficient.
2. Notice period. 4 weeks under Ground 8. Wait for it to expire before issuing proceedings.
3. Issue Form N5 at the County Court covering the property’s area. Court fee currently £355 (verify the current fee on gov.uk).
4. Hearing. The accelerated procedure is no longer available. Expect a hearing 2–4 months after issue, depending on the court’s waiting times.
5. At hearing. Bring your evidence: rent ledger printed up to and including the hearing date, tenancy agreement, deposit protection certificate, prescribed information, gas safety records, the Section 8 notice with proof of service.
6. Possession order. Mandatory under Ground 8 if proved. Outright possession order normally takes effect 14 days from order; the court can defer up to 6 weeks where exceptional hardship is established.
7. Warrant of possession. If the tenant does not vacate by the date in the order, apply for a warrant. County Court bailiffs enforce; further wait of weeks or months is typical.

Common defences

• Disputed arrears figure. Tenant claims to have paid amounts not credited, or alleges set-off for disrepair, deposit-protection breaches, or harassment.
• Universal Credit timing. Tenant alleges arrears are due to UC processing delays — those amounts must be excluded.
• Defective notice. Wrong form, wrong dates, miscalculated arrears, missing particulars.
• Procedural failures. Missing gas safety record at start of tenancy, deposit protection failures, no How to Rent guide. These remain relevant under the new regime.

Practical advice

• Negotiate early. A payment plan or surrender by deed (see deed of surrender) is faster and cheaper than possession proceedings.
• Document everything. Every payment chase, every offer, every refusal. Discretionary grounds turn on reasonableness and your conduct will be examined.
• Consider a money judgment as well as possession. The court can grant a money judgment for the arrears. Enforcing it is a separate matter, but the judgment is useful evidence in any future credit application by the tenant.
• Know your tenant’s circumstances. Tenants on UC, fleeing domestic violence, or in mental health crisis may attract sympathy at hearing under discretionary grounds. Adjust your approach and documentation accordingly.