Tenants say they fear ‘revenge evictions’ if they complain about problems

MORE THAN a quarter of private tenants in England who have had problems while renting did not complain for fear of “revenge evictions”, Citizens Advice has found.

And based on their experiences of helping private renters, more than two fifths of Citizens Advice staff said worrying about the consequences of complaining was the biggest issue for tenants seeking redress for their problem.

Citizens Advice said its findings equate to a quarter of a million households in England putting up with shoddy or unsafe homes out of fear of eviction. The charity said the most common issue that private tenants need its help with is repairs and maintenance.

It said more than 13,000 issues about problems such as mould, electrical faults and pest infestation were dealt with by advisers in person, over the phone, by email and via webchat last year.

The national charity is calling on the Government to use a planned introduction of an ombudsman for private landlords to further protect tenants from revenge eviction.

Last year Citizens Advice recommended all private landlords be required to join a dispute resolution scheme.

It said that while some landlords set out clear processes and timescales for complaints, others rely on informal methods such as texts or face-to-face chats.

Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: “People who rent shabby or unsafe homes have few options when landlords let them down.

“Resolving disputes can be risky, costly and complicated.”

Richard Lambert, chief executive officer at the National Landlords Association (NLA), said: “No one should live in fear of being evicted or having their rent increased for raising issues about important repairs in their home, but this is simply not an accurate picture of how the vast majority of landlords would respond to such requests.”