Six Month Court Wait for a Buy to Let Repossession

According to official data, landlords evicting a tenant through the courts must wait up to six months during 2017 to repossess a rented home. 

The fastest courts for processing evictions are in the South West, taking an average of 18.1 weeks to see a case through, says the Ministry of Justice. 

In London, the courts take seven weeks longer to deal with a case - an average of 25 weeks - just a week shy of six months. 

The data comes from a reply to a written question in Parliament by Thirsk MP Kevin Hollinrake. He asked the ministry for buy to let repossession times across England be broken down by county court circuit. 

Across the country, the average repossession takes 22 weeks. Meanwhile, the government is consulting on proposals for a specialist housing court to speed up justice for landlords and tenants renting homes privately.

“Tenants, landlords and agents can bring a range of housing issues to the courts or First-tier Tribunal to resolve disputes and enforce their rights,” says the consultation. 

“However, concerns have been raised that this does not always work as effectively as it could. Tenants and landlords have suggested that it can be difficult for them to navigate bringing a case to court without support. 

“We want to explore ways of reducing delays and improving the service for all users who bring housing cases to the courts and tribunal services.”

Weeks courts take to process repossession orders

 20132014201520162017
London24.024.324.429.525.0
Midlands23.625.323.123.621.4
North East26.619.724.625.020.0
North West27.526.819.719.021.1
South East23.221.020.819.920.5
South West20.623.016.019.018.1

Source: UK Parliament/ Ministry of Justice

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View Related Handbook Page

Applying to Court for Possession — Accelerated Procedure

An application for possession by the accelerated procedure is only available after service of a section 21 notice and is processed using the N5B claim form.

Applying to Court for Possession — Standard Procedure

Only the landlord or their solicitor can sign the court papers. A common reason for possession claims being rejected by the court is that a letting agent signs them. A letting agent can help the landlord draft the paperwork, but they cannot sign on the landlord’s behalf, and they do not have a right to represent the landlord in court in the landlord’s absence. A landlord who is likely to be absent from the UK will need to instruct a solicitor to commence legal action if they wish to be represented in their absence.