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Average time to evict a tenant: How long do evictions really take?
Eviction notices either fall under Section 8 or Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988, but how long does each notice typically take for you to repossess your property?
There may be a variety of reasons for choosing to evict your tenant(s) during a fixed-term tenancy, including rent arrears or antisocial behaviour.
The process may appear daunting at first, but this guide covers everything you need to know to ensure you are within your legal rights, and the average time taken to evict a tenant so you know what to expect.
Evicting a tenant
In the UK, the two types of eviction notices you may issue your tenant(s) are a Section 8 or a Section 21.
What is a Section 8?
A Section 8 notice can be used for tenants in an assured shorthold tenancy and requires the landlord to provide a legal reason for the eviction. Typically, Section 8s are issued due to the tenant being in rent arrears, but they may also be issued for anti-social behaviour or if the tenant has breached the terms of the contract.
How much notice do you need to give for a Section 8 eviction?
When you issue a Section 8 to your tenant(s), you must include written details on the grounds for possession and when you intend to begin court proceedings. Which grounds you use determines how much notice of court action you must give.
For grounds 8, 10, and 11 (all related to rent arrears), ground 12 (the tenant has broken a term of their rental agreement), and ground 13 (the tenant has allowed the property’s condition to worsen), you must provide your tenant(s) with at least two weeks’ notice of when you intend to begin court action.
For ground 14 (the tenant is causing a nuisance to neighbours and/or they have a criminal conviction related to the property or area), you may apply to the court as soon as you have issued the tenant(s) the Section 8 notice.
How long does a Section 8 take?
Once you have decided to begin court action, your tenant will receive a letter from the court with details for their hearing – this is typically set three to eight weeks from the date of the letter.
If the court supports the grounds for eviction, they will issue a possession order - over the last year Q1 2023-Q1 2024), it has taken between 11.5 and 12.6 weeks, on average, for an order to be issued.
What is a Section 21?
The most common form of eviction, a Section 21 notice begins the legal process of ending an assured shorthold tenancy and is known as a ‘no fault’ eviction, as landlords do not require grounds to evict their tenant(s).
How many month’s notice do you need to give for a Section 21 eviction?
After you have issued a Section 21 to your tenant(s), they typically have a two-month notice period to vacate your property. However, this may be longer if, for instance, they pay rent in three-month instalments (therefore, the notice period will be three months).
How long does a Section 21 take?
If the tenant does not leave the property within their notice period, you will have to apply to the courts for a possession order.
You can do this as soon as the notice period has run out, but it must be done within six months of the first issuance of the Section 21. If the tenant has the right to a longer notice period, you must apply for a possession order within four months of the end date of the notice.
In the first quarter of 2024, the average time for a possession order to be issued was 12.3 weeks from the claim date.
If you’re a UK landlord, head to our comprehensive landlord hub for more advice, guidance and resources.
UK eviction statistics
How many landlord possession claims are made each year?
Since the first quarter of 2023, the greatest number of landlord possession claims filed in county courts was during Q3 of 2023. During this period, nearly 25,000 (24,992) possession claims were made.
A breakdown of landlord possession claims that lead to orders, warrants and repossessions in the county courts (2023-2024)
| Year | Quarter | Claims | Claims leading to orders | Claims leading to warrants | Claims leading to repossessions by county court bailiffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Q1 | 23,389 | 16,627 | 8,712 | 6,120 |
| 2023 | Q2 | 22,526 | 15,936 | 8,110 | 5,427 |
| 2023 | Q3 | 24,922 | 17,521 | 8,457 | 4,710 |
| 2023 | Q4 | 23,374 | 15,149 | 6,154 | 2,131 |
| 2024 | Q1 | 24,874 | 6,278 | 1,139 | 61 |
(Source: GOV.UK)
However, the number of successful claims during this quarter were among the lowest over the last year. Less than a fifth (18.9%) of these claims led to repossessions by county court bailiffs, compared to more than a quarter (26.2%) of actions in Q1.
Similarly, the number of claims leading to orders and claims leading to warrants was lower in Q3 than in the first two quarters of the year. That said, the number of successful claims decreased further in Q4 2023, with just 9.1% of claims leading to county court bailiff repossessions.
The provisional estimates for landlord possession claims in England and Wales in the first quarter of 2024 indicate a drastically lower success rate, with just 4.6% leading to warrants and 0.2% repossessions.
How long does the average eviction process take?
The time between landlords’ possession claims and action taken naturally increases depending on whether an order, warrant, or repossession is issued.
A breakdown of the average time in weeks for landlord possession claims to become an order, warrant and repossession (2023-2024)
A breakdown of the average time in weeks for landlord possession claims to become an order, warrant and repossession (2023-2024)
| Year | Number of orders | Average time between claims and orders issued (weeks) | Number of warrants | Average time between claims and warrants issued (weeks) | Number of repossessions | Average time between claims and repossessions (weeks) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 2023 | 17,077 | 12.6 | 9,566 | 32.3 | 6,413 | 37.5 |
| Q1 2024 | 17,576 | 12.3 | 10,516 | 30 | 6,764 | 37.6 |
(Source: GOV.UK)
Provisional figures for the first quarter of 2024 indicate that an order of possession takes the best part of three months (12.3) weeks to issue. This is the longest time since Q1 2023, when the average time was slightly longer, at 12.6 weeks.
The average time to issue a warrant following a landlord claim remained consistent between Q4 2023 and Q1 2024, at 30 weeks – around seven months.
Following a rise in the average time between claim and repossession from Q2 2023 to Q4 2023, provisional figures for Q1 2024 indicate that the process has sped up slightly to 37.6 weeks – over eight and a half months.
FAQs
What is a Section 21?
Commonly referred to as a ‘no fault eviction,’ a Section 21 notice allows you to evict your tenant after the end of their fixed term tenancy or during a periodic tenancy - a tenancy with no fixed end date.
What makes a Section 21 notice invalid?
There are a variety of reasons that you cannot serve a Section 21 notice, including:
If it’s less than four months since the tenancy began or the fixed-term tenancy has not ended - unless you have a break clause in the contract
The council has served you an improvement notice for the property in the last six months
You failed to put your tenants’ deposit in an accredited Deposit Protection Scheme
You are using the property as a Home of Multiple Occupancy but failed to obtain an HMO licence from the council
You failed to supply your tenant with the following documents at the beginning of their tenancy:
The property’s Energy Performance Certificate
A current gas safety certificate (if gas is installed on the property)
The government’s ‘How to Rent’ guide
When will Section 21 be scrapped?
The new Labour government outlined its Renters’ Rights Bill in the King’s Speech in July 2024. Among other changes (including renters’ right to challenge rent increases and the right to keep pets, unless refused on reasonable grounds), the bill intends to abolish no-fault Section 21 evictions.
There is no fixed date for when this bill will be passed into law, but it is unlikely to be before late 2024 or early 2025.
How long does it take to get a possession order after Section 21?
When serving a Section 21, you must give your tenant two months’ notice, and then you have six months to apply for a court order of eviction.
In the first quarter of 2024, it typically took 12.3 weeks after issuing the claim to receive the court order.
What happens after a Section 8 is served?
Once you have issued a Section 8 to your tenant(s), you have one year to begin court proceedings. For most grounds of eviction you must give the tenant at least two weeks’ notice of your intent to begin court action, but if you are evicting them on ground 14 (for public nuisance and/or convictions), you may begin as soon as they have received the Section 8.
