Collected on time. Chased correctly. Your legal position protected.
Rent not arriving is stressful enough. Handling it wrong makes it worse. An informal conversation with a tenant, an unsigned arrangement, a payment accepted without documentation - any of these can undermine your legal position when it matters most.
With Section 21 abolished, Section 8 is now the only route to possession. That means every step of the arrears process - from the first missed payment to a formal notice - needs to be handled correctly and documented in a way that holds up if it reaches court.
We manage rent collection and arrears chasing as part of our compliance-led landlord management service. Not informally. Not reactively. To a documented protocol that protects you throughout.
Rent is collected monthly by direct debit on the due date. Every payment is reconciled against the tenancy agreement and recorded in your rent ledger. You receive a monthly statement. If anything is unclear, it is documented - not held in someone's inbox.
No chasing required. Payment is automated and consistent.
Every payment recorded with date, amount, and reference. Your complete payment history, available at any time.
Clear breakdown of what was collected, when, and any variances. No surprises.
Rent increases handled via Section 13 notice. All payment processes compliant with current legislation.
We do not wait to see if a missed payment resolves itself. We act on day one. Every step is documented so that if the matter progresses to possession proceedings, the paper trail is complete and the notice is defensible.
Rent has not arrived. We contact the tenant directly - by phone and in writing. We establish whether this is a payment error, a bank issue, or a genuine shortfall. You are notified the same day.
If rent remains outstanding, a formal written notice is issued stating the arrears amount, the payment required, and the consequences of non-payment. This is a documented legal step - not an informal reminder.
If arrears remain unresolved and meet the threshold for possession, we prepare the Section 8 notice. The correct ground is identified, the notice period is calculated, and the notice is served in the legally valid format.
Where possession proceedings are required, we refer to our specialist debt recovery network. You are not left to manage this alone. Our documentation is your evidence at every stage.
Why every step is in writing
Section 21 no-fault eviction is abolished. Section 8 is now the only legal route to possession. For a Section 8 notice to succeed, the grounds must be valid, the notice period must be correct, and the paperwork must be clean.
An informal conversation about arrears has no legal standing. A payment accepted without documentation of the arrears balance can complicate the notice grounds. A notice served on the wrong form, with the wrong period, or on a tenancy with procedural errors elsewhere is challengeable.
We manage arrears the way they need to be managed if they might reach court - because some of them will.
Most arrears disputes that become serious problems started with something small being handled badly. These are the situations we see regularly.
| Situation | What Went Wrong | Consequence |
|---|---|---|
| Landlord accepted partial payments for three months without formal notice | No written record of the outstanding balance. Tenant disputes the arrears amount. | Section 8 notice challenged. Landlord cannot evidence the correct arrears figure. |
| Agent had an informal conversation with tenant about overdue rent | No documentation. Tenant claims they were told a payment arrangement was agreed. | Landlord cannot demonstrate the correct arrears process was followed. |
| Section 8 notice served on the wrong form or with incorrect notice period | Procedural error. Tenant's solicitor identifies the defect. | Notice is invalid. Process must restart from scratch. Further months of arrears accumulate. |
| Deposit not protected within 30 days or prescribed information not served | Compliance failure unrelated to the arrears, but it surfaces in proceedings. | Landlord cannot serve Section 8 notice on certain grounds. Position significantly weakened. |
Accepting a partial payment does not prevent you from pursuing possession - but only if it is handled correctly. The shortfall must be clearly recorded, the arrears balance maintained, and the acceptance must not be framed in a way that implies a payment arrangement was agreed.
We accept partial payments, document the shortfall, update the rent ledger to reflect the outstanding balance, and continue the arrears protocol on the remaining amount. The tenant receives written confirmation of what was received and what remains due. This protects your legal position at every stage.
Before the Renters' Rights Act 2025, landlords had two routes to possession: Section 21, which required no grounds, and Section 8, which required specific statutory grounds including rent arrears. Section 21 was the fallback when Section 8 grounds were uncertain or the paperwork wasn't clean.
That fallback no longer exists. Section 8 is now the only route. That means every element of how a tenancy is managed - the deposit, the prescribed information, the safety certificates, the rent increase notices - can affect whether a possession notice succeeds or is challenged.
Landlords who have been managing informally, or whose agents have not updated their processes for the new rules, are carrying risk they may not be aware of. A compliance review before a problem arises is significantly cheaper than fixing one after.
£88 Compliance Audit - know your position before it matters
A document-based audit of your tenancy, deposit protection, safety certificates, and licensing position. Written report, RAG rating, priority action list. If we find issues, we tell you what they are and how to fix them.
Book a Compliance AuditWe manage rent collection and arrears for landlords across the UK. Tell us about your situation.
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies. Learn more
