Covid recovery consultation: easy read version

Theme 4 – Protection from eviction

In this theme the Tribunal is a group of people who make decisions about housing and property in the private sector.

They do not make decisions about social housing.

A private landlord is a person who rents a property to a person called a private tenant.

In this theme they will simply be called ‘landlord’ and ‘tenant’.

Before the Covid pandemic landlords could ask the Tribunal to agree that someone could be evicted for one reason.

Evicted means the tenant must leave the property.

If the reason for ending the tenancy was rent arrears the Tribunal usually had to agree to the eviction.

Rent arrears is when a tenant has not paid their rent to their landlord.

In the pandemic the Scottish Government introduced temporary laws to protect tenants from eviction in 2 ways:

1. The Tribunal can look at all the information in a case and not just one reason before they decide if a tenant can be evicted.

2. Landlords must work with a tenant in rent arrears before asking the Tribunal to agree to an eviction.

This could mean agreeing how rent arrears can be paid back.

The Scottish Government thinks the law about landlords working with tenants in rent arrears should be made permanent.

This would make sure tenants can be protected as much as possible.

The Scottish Government also wants to know what you think about the Tribunal looking at all the information in an eviction case for any reason.