Mar

Scotland doubles down on English Coronavirus-linked evictions ban

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While Boris Johnson announced a three-month wait for landlords before an eviction can start, Scottish landlords will have to wait for six months.

Scotland has followed England’s lead and is
moving to temporarily extend the limit after which landlords can evict a
tenant.
Kevin Stuart, the country’s housing minister, has written an open letter to all
Scottish landlords and letting agents asking them for their support to ensure
tenants are not evicted because they have suffered financial hardships due to
Coronavirus.
“I hope that you will recognise at this challenging time
that landlords must be flexible with tenants facing financial hardship and
signpost them to the sources of financial support available,” he says.
Currently, landlords can move to evict if a tenant is in arrears for at least
three months in a row, but this is to be extended to six months.

“Let me be clear we do not want private sector landlords to be disadvantaged by a lack of rent,” says First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.
“However, the reality of what we face means that if landlords don’t support their tenants, then it’s not just the tenants who will be negatively impacted, it will be all of society who will have to collectively pay for the price.” Kevin Stuart said: “I know that we must get the balance right between protecting tenants and ensuring landlords can continue to provide housing.
“We would ask you to urge your tenants to apply for Statutory Sick Pay and Universal Credit where they are eligible.
“And we would also urge you to encourage them to speak to you as soon as they are in financial difficulty as it may mean that they are unable to pay their rent at this time.”

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