Private sector tenants have been given a new platform where they have been told “it will be easier to hold criminal landlords to account.”
The ‘My Housing Issue’ Gateway, designed by the TDS Charitable Foundation, has won the backing of activist group Generation Rent.
The platform apparently ensures tenants know where to take complaints related to rented housing.
Research by the foundation has found that 50% of private renters do not know where to go for help if their agent or landlord fails to address a problem.
The foundation claims that 48% want clearer information on how to make a complaint when needed. Some 69% say they would make use of a dedicated website.
A statement from the foundation says: “With the Renters’ Rights Bill creating new enforcement tools and standards in the private rented sector, this will add to the array of already complex enforcement mechanisms currently available which tenants are already struggling to navigate.
“The Gateway will help tenants identify the correct route to seek to resolve their problems, encourage the early resolution of disputes where possible, and provide relevant information about housing rights and options in an interactive and user-friendly format.
“It has been designed following extensive consultation with government officials, and groups representing tenants, landlords, letting agents and the legal advice sector.”
Dan Wilson Craw, deputy chief executive at Generation Rent, comments: “One of the biggest barriers to improving private rented homes is the sheer number of bodies that play a role in enforcing tenant protections, and the confusion this creates among renters themselves.
“As the government implements the reforms currently going through Parliament it is essential that private renters can access free, clear and useful resources and information.
“This new Gateway offers tenants an easy-to-use tool, tailored to their needs – empowering them to make their next moves informed and with confidence.”
The TDS Charitable Foundation now wants the government to include the Gateway in the ‘How to Rent’ guide which is legally required to be given to every tenant.
A TDS Group spokesperson says: “Tenants are hungry for better, easy to access information to enforce their rights and hold criminal landlords to account. The Gateway will do just that, ensuring renters know where to go for the help they need, when they need it.
“Empowering tenants like this will be vital if the government’s ambitions of a better private rented sector are to become a reality.”
The platform appears to have the support of the National Residential Landlords Association, whose spokesperson says: “Any good landlord will tell you that communication is the key to sustaining a successful tenancy. Yet it’s too often the case that minor problems in rental properties can be allowed to worsen dramatically due to a communication breakdown between landlords and tenants.
“Tenants should have the confidence and the tools to be able to resolve issues in their rented accommodation, and we endorse the TDS Charitable Foundation’s move to make it easier for tenants to log problems in their rental property with their landlords.”
This article is taken from Landlord Today