Landlord right of entry, harassment and unlawful eviction (England & Wales)

A landlord in England must give at least 24 hours' notice and visit at a reasonable time of day before entering a rented home, unless it is an emergency. Entering without notice can breach the tenant's quiet enjoyment; harassment and eviction without a court order are criminal offences under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977. This guide sets out the law as it stands after the Renters' Rights Act 2025, with every claim sourced.

General information, not legal advice. Checked against the sources listed at the end on 20 July 2026.

When a landlord can enter: the 24-hour rule

Tenants have the right to live in their home undisturbed. gov.uk puts the baseline plainly: a landlord has to give at least 24 hours' notice and visit at a reasonable time of day, unless it is an emergency and they need immediate access.

Source: gov.uk: Private renting, your rights and responsibilities

The statutory rights of entry are narrower than most people assume, and there are two distinct ones:

Inspection. Where the landlord has the repairing obligation in section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 (structure, exterior, and installations for water, gas, electricity, sanitation and heating), section 11(6) implies a right for the landlord, or someone authorised in writing, "at reasonable times of the day and on giving 24 hours' notice in writing to the occupier" to enter "for the purpose of viewing their condition and state of repair". That is a right to look, not a general right to do works.
Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 11 (repairing obligations; s.11(6) right to enter and view)
Carrying out repairs. For assured tenancies, section 16 of the Housing Act 1988 implies a term that the tenant "shall afford to the landlord access to the dwelling-house ... and all reasonable facilities for executing therein any repairs which the landlord is entitled to execute". It sets no notice period itself; the 24-hour, reasonable-time standard is the accepted practice.
Source: Housing Act 1988, section 16 (implied term: access for repairs)

Everything beyond that runs on the tenant's agreement. Shelter advises tenants that a landlord or agent should not come in without telling them and asking if it is okay, that the tenant can suggest a different time, and that in shared housing the landlord cannot enter a tenant's bedroom without consent. Repeatedly entering without notice or permission can amount to harassment.

Source: Shelter: can my landlord enter without notice or permission?

Access for safety checks: what the rules actually require

Annual gas safety check

Regulation 36 of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 requires a Gas Safe registered engineer to check each appliance and flue at least every 12 months, with the record given to tenants. The regulation grants no right of entry. If a tenant refuses access, the HSE expects the landlord to show all reasonable steps: at least three documented attempts, a notice left after each attempted visit, and a letter explaining the check is a legal safety requirement. The HSE is explicit that a landlord must not use force to enter.

Sources: Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, regulation 36, HSE: landlord gas safety FAQs (refused access, reasonable steps)

Electrical safety (EICR), England

The Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 require inspection and testing at least every five years by a qualified person, with the report supplied to tenants within 28 days. Where a tenant refuses entry, the regulations say the landlord is not treated as in breach solely because they did not bring legal proceedings to secure entry: documented reasonable steps are required, a lawsuit is not.

Source: Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, regulation 3

Smoke and CO alarms, England

The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 (as amended in 2022) require a smoke alarm on every storey with living accommodation and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance other than a gas cooker, checked as working on the day a new tenancy begins and repaired or replaced as soon as reasonably practicable once reported faulty.

Source: Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015, regulation 4

If access is repeatedly refused, the landlord's lawful last resort is a county court injunction requiring the tenant to permit entry. Forcing the door is never lawful self-help, and pressuring a tenant with repeated unannounced visits risks committing the harassment offence under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977 described below.

Source: Protection from Eviction Act 1977, section 3 (no eviction without court proceedings)

Harassment and unlawful eviction are crimes

The Protection from Eviction Act 1977 creates the two core offences in England and Wales:

Source: Protection from Eviction Act 1977, section 1 (unlawful eviction and harassment offences)

Unlawful eviction (section 1(2)). Unlawfully depriving a residential occupier of occupation of the premises, or any part of them, or attempting to, is an offence unless the person proves they reasonably believed the occupier had stopped living there. Section 3 adds that possession can only be recovered through court proceedings: changing the locks is not an option, whatever the arrears.
Sources: Protection from Eviction Act 1977, section 1 (unlawful eviction and harassment offences), Protection from Eviction Act 1977, section 3 (no eviction without court proceedings)
Harassment (section 1(3) and 1(3A)). Doing acts likely to interfere with the peace or comfort of the occupier or their household, or persistently withdrawing or withholding services reasonably required to live in the home (gas, electricity, water), is an offence when done to make the occupier leave or give up their rights. Since 1988, a landlord or agent commits the offence on the lower standard of knowing, or having reasonable cause to believe, the conduct would have that effect.
Source: Protection from Eviction Act 1977, section 1 (unlawful eviction and harassment offences)

Penalties for landlord harassment and illegal eviction run to six months' imprisonment or a fine on summary conviction, and up to two years on indictment. Local authorities prosecute (many employ tenancy relations officers), and gov.uk notes councils can alternatively issue civil penalties of up to £40,000 for harassment or illegal eviction. Where there is violence or a lockout, the police should be called.

Source: gov.uk: Harassment and illegal evictions

What unlawful eviction costs: the damages

A tenant who is unlawfully evicted has two overlapping civil routes:

The statutory tort (Housing Act 1988, ss.27 to 28). Damages are measured by the landlord's gain: the difference between the value of the landlord's interest with the tenant in place and with the tenant gone, assessed immediately before the occupier left. The Supreme Court confirmed in Loveridge v Lambeth [2014] UKSC 65 that this exceptionally awards the landlord's gain rather than the tenant's loss. Two consequences follow: where the landlord gains little (a periodic tenant with limited security, or a tenant who is reinstated before proceedings finish), statutory damages can be nominal, and reinstatement or an unreasonably refused offer of reinstatement can defeat or reduce the claim.
Sources: Housing Act 1988, section 27 (liability for unlawful eviction), Housing Act 1988, section 28 (the measure of damages), UK Supreme Court: Loveridge v Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Lambeth [2014] UKSC 65
Common law. Breach of the quiet enjoyment covenant and trespass, with general, special, aggravated and exemplary damages available. In Smith v Khan [2018] EWCA Civ 1137 the Court of Appeal held general damages compensate the anxiety, inconvenience and mental stress of losing one's home and endorsed a bracket of roughly £100 to £300 per night. Shelter Legal reports total awards in reported cases from a few hundred pounds up to £90,500 depending on security of tenure, conduct and duration.
Sources: Nearly Legal: Court of Appeal on illegal eviction quantum (Smith v Khan [2018] EWCA Civ 1137), Shelter Legal: civil remedies for harassment and illegal eviction, UK Supreme Court: Loveridge v Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Lambeth [2014] UKSC 65

Courts can also order a landlord to let the tenant back in, including by emergency injunction.

After the Renters' Rights Act 2025

The Renters' Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025, and its main tenancy reforms took effect in England on 1 May 2026: section 21 no-fault evictions were abolished, existing assured shorthold tenancies converted to periodic assured tenancies, and possession now requires one of the reformed statutory grounds. The old retaliatory-eviction shield in section 33 of the Deregulation Act 2015, which blocked a section 21 notice after a council improvement notice, was repealed along with the regime it policed; protection against retaliatory eviction now flows from the grounds-based system itself. Wales runs its own system of occupation contracts under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016, which likewise requires notice before entry, and Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate tribunals and statutes with the same core principle: eviction needs legal process, never self-help.

Sources: Renters' Rights Act 2025, Deregulation Act 2015, section 33 (retaliatory eviction; omitted from 1 May 2026), House of Commons Library: Renters' reform in England, what's happening and when, Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016

Practical guidance for each side of the door

Landlords and agents: tenant refusing access

Put every request in writing with the 24-hour notice and a reasonable proposed time, offer alternatives, and keep the trail. For safety checks, follow the HSE pattern: three documented attempts, a note left each time, a letter explaining the legal duty. If refusal continues, take advice on a county court access injunction. Never force entry and never resort to pressure tactics; both can turn a compliance problem into a criminal one.

Source: HSE: landlord gas safety FAQs (refused access, reasonable steps)

Tenants: landlord entering without notice

Keep a dated log of every incident, object in writing, and propose times that do work. If it continues, contact the council (its tenancy relations or private housing team can warn, fine and prosecute), call the police if there is violence or you are locked out, and consider a county court claim for an injunction and damages.

Tradespeople attending tenanted properties

The right of entry belongs to the landlord, not to you. Only attend when the landlord or agent confirms the tenant has been given proper notice or has agreed the visit, get the tenant's okay again at the door, and if the tenant refuses entry, leave and report back rather than persisting. Record the attempted visit; for gas and electrical checks that record is exactly what the landlord needs to show reasonable steps.

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Frequently asked questions

Can my landlord enter the property without my permission?

Not in normal circumstances. Tenants in England have the right to live in the property undisturbed, and gov.uk states a landlord must give at least 24 hours' notice and visit at a reasonable time of day, unless it is an emergency needing immediate access. Entering without notice or permission can breach the tenant's quiet enjoyment and, if repeated, can amount to the criminal offence of harassment under section 1(3) of the Protection from Eviction Act 1977.

Sources: gov.uk: Private renting, your rights and responsibilities, Protection from Eviction Act 1977, section 1 (unlawful eviction and harassment offences)

How much notice does a landlord need to give to inspect or repair?

For inspections under the repairing obligation, section 11(6) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 requires 24 hours' written notice, at a reasonable time of day. For actually carrying out repairs in an assured tenancy, section 16 of the Housing Act 1988 implies a term that the tenant must give the landlord access and reasonable facilities, though it sets no specific notice period; in practice the same 24-hour, reasonable-time standard applies.

Sources: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 11 (repairing obligations; s.11(6) right to enter and view), Housing Act 1988, section 16 (implied term: access for repairs)

Can a tenant refuse access for gas or electrical safety checks?

A tenant can physically refuse entry, and the landlord must not force it. The landlord's duty is to take all reasonable steps: for the annual gas safety check the HSE expects at least three documented attempts, a note left after each attempted visit, and a letter explaining the check is a legal requirement. For the five-yearly electrical (EICR) check in England, the 2020 regulations say a landlord who is refused entry is not in breach merely because they did not go to court to force access. The last resort for a landlord is a county court injunction, never forced entry.

Sources: HSE: landlord gas safety FAQs (refused access, reasonable steps), Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, regulation 3

What counts as landlord harassment in England and Wales?

Under section 1(3) of the Protection from Eviction Act 1977 it is a criminal offence to do acts likely to interfere with the peace or comfort of a residential occupier, or persistently withdraw or withhold services reasonably required to live in the home (like gas, electricity or water), intending to make them leave or stop exercising their rights. Since 1988 a landlord or agent also commits the offence if they know or have reasonable cause to believe the conduct would have that effect. Penalties run up to two years' imprisonment on indictment, and councils can also issue civil penalties of up to £40,000.

Sources: Protection from Eviction Act 1977, section 1 (unlawful eviction and harassment offences), gov.uk: Harassment and illegal evictions

What compensation can a tenant get for unlawful eviction?

Two routes exist. The statutory tort in sections 27 and 28 of the Housing Act 1988 awards the landlord's gain from the eviction (the difference in the property's value with and without the tenant), which the Supreme Court confirmed in Loveridge v Lambeth [2014] UKSC 65; for short tenancies that gain is often small. The usually more valuable route is common-law damages for breach of quiet enjoyment and trespass: in Smith v Khan [2018] EWCA Civ 1137 the Court of Appeal endorsed general damages of roughly £100 to £300 per night out of the home, plus aggravated and exemplary damages. Shelter Legal reports total awards in reported cases ranging from hundreds of pounds up to £90,500.

Sources: Housing Act 1988, section 27 (liability for unlawful eviction), Housing Act 1988, section 28 (the measure of damages), Nearly Legal: Court of Appeal on illegal eviction quantum (Smith v Khan [2018] EWCA Civ 1137), Shelter Legal: civil remedies for harassment and illegal eviction, UK Supreme Court: Loveridge v Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Lambeth [2014] UKSC 65

Does Section 21 still exist?

No, not for new possession claims in England. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025 and its main tenancy reforms came into force on 1 May 2026, abolishing section 21 no-fault evictions and converting assured shorthold tenancies into periodic assured tenancies. Landlords now need a legal ground for possession, and evicting without a court order remains a criminal offence under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977. Wales has its own system under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016.

Sources: Renters' Rights Act 2025, Protection from Eviction Act 1977, section 1 (unlawful eviction and harassment offences), Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016

Sources

Every legal claim on this page was checked against the sources below on 20 July 2026. Statutory quotations are from legislation.gov.uk.