‘The one basic thing that social housing tenants have that private renters do not is security of tenure’

• ALEX Shinder makes some interesting points in his letter (How tenants of local authorities can lose out, February 3), but this is the first time we have ever heard someone claim that “Social tenants do not enjoy such power…” as private renters.

The one basic thing that social housing tenants have that private renters do not is security of tenure, and that is worth its weight in gold when you are trying to keep the roof over your head.

He then goes on to say: “In practice it is far more compelling for private sector landlords to comply because they are otherwise hit financially and reputationally…”

Again, this is simply not the case as we (and lots of other groups / organisations across the country who work with private renters) have lots of examples of where landlords engage in what is known as “revenge eviction”.

This is where rather than addressing the problems raised by their tenants they just evict them.

They are able to do this because of what is known as the “no-fault” eviction process whereby the landlord does not have to give a reason for why they want the tenant out.

As stated previously because both council (and housing association) tenants have security of tenure they, thankfully, will never have to face such a one-sided and unfair legal process.

Also, on an almost daily basis, we hear of cases where a private landlord will try and evict their tenants either by the use of email, text, phone call and letter, and although all of these ways are illegal the landlord knows that often – through a combination of fear, renters’ lack of knowledge of their rights, and the difficulty with getting help, advice and support these days – they will most likely get away with this.

Reputationally private landlords know that regardless of how they and the “service” they provide are perceived people will still queue up to rent from them, especially in perennially popular and high demand areas like Camden, and therefore it has little impact on their behaviour.

Alex Shinder states that private renters can simply “switch if they are dissatisfied”, which may be an option for Camden’s more affluent ones (as long as they don’t mind moving home all the time); but for people on lower incomes and / or benefits, this is simply not an option.

It could also be the case that renters merely end up swapping one bad landlord for another.

Camden Council has recently set up a dedicated website for the borough’s private renters: www.camden.gov.uk/privaterenters and to find out more about who we are and what we do go to: www.cfpt.org.uk

ROBERT TAYLOR
Camden Federation
of Private Tenants, NW5