Capping of rent increases on referral or appeal: equality impact assessment results

The Scope of the EQIA

This EQIA has considered the impact of the new measures on tenants and landlords with protected characteristics (age; disability; sex (including pregnancy and maternity); gender reassignment; sexual orientation; race; and religion or belief) in relation to the requirements of the public sector equality duty to eliminate discrimination; advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations.

As part of our consideration and policy development of the measures, a formal public consultation was carried out as part of the Scottish Government’s New Deal for Tenants: Draft Rented Sector Strategy.

Analysis of responses^[7] to the consultation indicated that many respondents to the consultation supported proposals to change the rent adjudication process to remove the ability for a Rent Officer to increase the rent above that requested by the landlord in relation to PRTs. Respondents agreed that the effectiveness of rent adjudication has been limited by the risk of the rent being increased higher than the rent requested by the landlord. Those in favour saw rent adjudication provisions as ‘the only safeguard for tenants against unaffordable rent increases’ and there were calls for more action to ensure all private tenants are aware of the adjudication option.

Those who disagreed argued that the proposed changes would result in the adjudication process being unfairly balanced and that current rules should remain unchanged. This would prevent ‘speculative’ rent appeals and ensure the process was fair for landlords. Those who supported the proposals suggested that changes were unlikely to result in unreasonable adjudication requests, given the low usage or rent adjudication to date, and reform to the rent adjudication process may act as a disincentive to landlords from proposing unreasonable and unaffordable rent increases.

No specific consultation has taken place in relation to taking forward amendments that would extend these changes to Assured Tenancies under the 1988 Act. However, the intention is to provide parity of approach where feasible for tenants seeking a rent adjudication.

We recognise that there is insufficient information available to form a complete picture of the experiences of those with protected characteristics. However, the EQIA has allowed the opportunity to consider the impact of these measures for these groups as fully as possible. As this measure increases the protection for tenants against unfair rent increases, it does not introduce changes that will directly or indirectly to discriminate on those with protected characteristics.