Renting in the UK is, more often than not, a headache. Or, in extreme cases, a horror story: damp box rooms costing a grand a month, mice sightings, and unreachable, unbothered landlords. Perhaps the most traumatic of all is the fact that, up until May 1, you could be forced out of your home with just two months’ notice for no reason at all.

Section 21 evictions, also referred to as no-fault evictions, were legal in England for over 37 years (take one guess which Prime Minister introduced those). They allowed landlords to evict tenants on a whim: “Sometimes that could happen because you’d complained about a boiler, or because you’d tried to negotiate over a rent increase – things your landlord just doesn’t want to deal with,” says Bismah Naqui, Communications Officer for campaign group Generation Rent. “Homes are the foundations of our lives, and the fact that we were being removed from them for no reason was a massive problem.”

No-fault evictions were outlawed on May 1 as part of the new Renters’ Rights Act, the most significant piece of legislation for renters’ rights in more than 30 years. From now on, to evict tenants, landlords will need to use a Section 8 notice, citing one or more legal reasons to end the tenancy (for example, if you’ve missed several rent payments or they wish to sell the property). It’s a step forward in solving the rental crisis; however, in the weeks, days, and hours leading up to the act coming into force, a flood of Section 21 notices were issued, as if landlords were manically exercising their omnipotence for one final time.

Tilly, 30, received her notice after being in her London flat for five and a half years – during her entire rental period, she says, she had very little contact with her landlord or the estate agent. “It came as a complete shock. It felt really upsetting and unsettling that someone could just take your home away from you in two months,” she tells Dazed. “I’m still slightly in denial about it because I loved living there.”

Elsewhere, in Manchester, 29-year-old Kyle found out via an email from his estate agent that he would have to leave his home of five years just two days before the act came into force. “I was shocked,” he tells Dazed, adding that it “feels pretty brutal” to be kicked out on the cusp of this kind of eviction being outlawed. Going outside for a “clear my head, panic walk” to process the news, Kyle overheard someone else’s frenzied phone call, where he could make out their breathless mention of “Section 21”. It tracks: solicitors reportedly were “inundated” with requests to serve no-fault eviction notices in the run up to May 1.

These stories have followed chatter from particularly ghoulish landlords who, opposed to the act, had suggested it would trigger a wave of landlords to sell up and ultimately leave tenants in a worse off position, with demand for rental properties far oustripping supply. Some have gleefully pointed to a spike in Section 21s in the run-up to May as proof they were right. However, Naqui says that narrative is mostly fearmongering, pointing to a recent report from Zoopla which found that the number of homes available to rent has actually increased in the past year.

It’s been unsettling [...] but overall, when I look at the bigger picture – and my morals and where I sit politically – I think it is a fantastic thing

“Homes don’t get bulldozed because a landlord wants out,” she says. “Those homes stay there and could go to a first-time buyer, or even a landlord who is actually able to comply with these new regulations: who doesn’t want to kick out their tenants for no reason, is happy to keep to only one rent increase a year, happy to do repairs, and sort things out if they’re broken. That’s a positive.” He also acknowledges the plight of renters like Tilly and Kyle: “You shouldn’t be kicked out of your home simply because your landlord doesn’t want to follow some rules.”

The act’s freeing up of more housing is something Tilly is actually optimistic about benefiting from in the long term. “As someone who will hopefully become a first-time home owner in the next year or so, that is fantastic,” she says. “It was gutting, and it’s been unsettling being evicted and having to find somewhere else as a result of it, but overall, when I look at the bigger picture – and my morals and where I sit politically – I think it is a fantastic thing.”

Meanwhile, Kyle says he may even try to buy his flat from his landlord, though he says this experience has unveiled some unsettling realities he’d overlooked, even after renting his whole life. “It has woken me up to the fact that I’m not as literate as I should be in terms of renting,” he says. “This is a reminder that landlords, literally and figuratively, hold the keys to the decision-making in terms of your tenancy.”

It’s why, going forward, renters’ associations and unions are encouraging renters to become more familiar with their rights: “how to use them and not be scared to use them,” as Naqui puts it. There are also calls for further legislation to be put into place, such as rent caps and local governments having more control over rental limits, which would mean that one day, paying rent in a major city might not swallow up such a debilitating portion of your income.

The banning of Section 21 evictions is one of the most significant changes to come from the new act, but it’s far from the only change that will improve the lives of renters. There is now a renters’ ombudsman, meaning renters can raise disputes with their landlords to a higher body, rather than screaming into the void (as it’s felt for many years). Additionally, fixed-term contracts have been banned; renters can now challenge rent increases, which must be reasonable and reflect market rates; and renters now have the right to negotiate a pet, so no more hiding your cat when your landlord comes knocking (though don’t forget surprise landlord visits have long been illegal anyway). 

Historically, landlords in Britain have held all the cards. Among all the bad news of 2026, the fact that this is changing is something to be happy about. “This is a restructuring of power,” Naqui says. “Rather than tenants having the upper hand or landlords having the upper hand, there’s more balance now.”