Information leaflet for tenants

Landlord Discussion
21

(You don’t actually need their acknowledgement to prove email or letter was sent)

You keep a copy of the email sent

You ask them face to face if received during an inspection visit you organize before 1 may or by a phone call

You hand over a hard copy at that visit if needed

You take notes of the conversation at the inspection visit/phone call and send these to the tenant by email or post as a contemporaneous record

You check with your letting agent (or OR) what evidence they are using and consider legally sufficient if challenged, of the email being sent

Tbh if you have a copy of the email sent and it was sent to the correct address as given by tenant on tenancy agreement on what basis is a Council going to try to issue a fine because not sent. They do have to have some actual evidence to issue a fine (not just a tenant’s assertion)

22

There have been cases in the past where email evidence has been refuted with claims that the emails were faked. Apparently something that’s not that difficult. However, I would agree with you that sending an email to a tenant who has consented in writing to receive notices that way should be enough. However, if they haven’t, you do really need the acknowledgement of receipt.

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23

@David122 absolutely in the rare circumstances where someone hasn’t supplied an email as part of the tenancy agreement (eg where currently no written agreement) it would be v sensible to check and get acknowledgement if sending by email (or post)

Doesnt apply to Openrent created ‘rent now’ tenancies as OR insist on having working tenant and LL email addresses.

Best

24

Well its more than needing to supply the email address, the tenant has to consent to receiving notices and documents that way. Users of the Openrent and landlord associations tenancy agreements that include this as standard are still a small fraction of the 2.5m landlords in England, and we dont know what the rest are using. However, my point was really about landlords needing to be aware that Government guidance may not always be reliable taken at face value and its best to look for advice from a range of sources when the stakes are so high.

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