Recommendation 19

The Department told us that as part of its reform agenda, it plans to end Section 21 work and introduce a mandatory redress scheme for landlords, with which it intends to empower tenants and improve landlord compliance.42 However, the Department is yet to assess the success of its existing redress scheme for letting agents and does not know how it has affected tenant experiences of the lettings process.43 We heard from the Chief Executive of the National Residential Landlords Association that the Government’s commitment to abolish abolition Section 21 would provide a ‘new opportunity to refresh the sector’, while tenant representatives stressed that the success of the scheme relies on its design.44 For example, if there are multiple schemes instead of a single ombudsman, it may create a market for landlords to choose from but be more confusing for renters.45 35 C&AG’s Report, para 18–19 36 Written evidence submitted by ACORN dated January 2022 37 Written evidence submitted by Glass Door Homeless Charity dated January 2022 38 Q 3 39 Qq 60, 61, 87 40 C&AG’s Report, para 4.5 41 Qq 4, 15 42 Q 55 43 C&AG’s Report, para 4.6 44 QQ11–14 45 Pre panel Q 3 Regulation of private renting 13 Understanding tenants’ experiences