The law changed on 1 May 2026. The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 raised the maximum Rent Repayment Order from 12 months’ rent to 2 years’ rent, and extended the deadline for applying from 12 months to 2 years from the date of the offence.
These new limits apply to offences committed on or after 1 May 2026. If your landlord’s offence was committed before that date, the previous rules still apply to you: a cap of 12 months’ rent, and 12 months to apply. Not sure which applies? Tell us the dates and we will work it out for you.
If you rented from a landlord who did not have the licence the law required, you may be able to get a large part of that rent back — and you can pursue it without paying anything up front. This is the short version of how that works.
The situation this applies to
Not every grievance with a landlord leads to a claim. This one is specific. Somewhere in England, you paid rent to a private landlord for a property that legally needed a licence and did not have one.
That happens far more than people expect, because three separate licensing schemes are in play and two of them are decided borough by borough:
- Mandatory HMO licensing — five or more people from two or more households sharing a kitchen, bathroom or toilet. Applies everywhere in England.
- Additional HMO licensing — usually three or more people from two or more households, but only where the council has designated the area.
- Selective licensing — ordinary rented homes, no sharing needed. A single tenant or one family can be covered.
Letting without the required licence is a criminal offence, and one that entitles you to apply for a Rent Repayment Order.
What you could get back
| Offence before 1 May 2026 | Offence on or after 1 May 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum award | 12 months’ rent | 2 years’ rent |
| Deadline to apply | 12 months from the offence | 2 years |
The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 doubled both. The maximum is not automatic — the tribunal weighs the seriousness of the offence and the conduct of both sides — but the awards are real money. Two decisions we publish in full came to £7,020 and £11,268, both under the old 12-month cap.
Who can claim
- Private tenants, current or former — you do not need to still live there.
- Anyone who paid rent during the offence. Rent met by housing benefit or universal credit is excluded, and recovered by the council instead.
- Each sharer separately. Four housemates means four claims, not one award split four ways.
- Not council tenants, housing association tenants, or tenants of arms-length management organisations.
What “no win, no fee” really means
It means no fee if you lose. If you win, the provider takes a percentage of what you recover — typically between 25% and 50%.
Be aware of one feature specific to these claims: the tribunal does not usually award legal costs. So a representative’s fee comes out of your award, not from the landlord. The upside of the same rule is that you are very unlikely to be ordered to pay your landlord’s costs if you lose, which makes bringing a claim genuinely low-risk.
What to ask before you sign anything →
You may not need anyone. If your case is documentary — a clear gap on the council’s register, bank statements covering the whole tenancy, one identifiable landlord — you can run it yourself. There is a tribunal fee to apply and another if there is a hearing — check the current figures on GOV.UK — and Help with Fees may cover both. We will tell you honestly if that is your situation.
The three things to do today
- Download your bank statements for the whole tenancy. This is the evidence people most often cannot get later.
- Write down your exact dates of moving in and moving out.
- Search your council’s public licensing register for the address, and compare the licence dates and holder against your tenancy.
Those three steps decide most claims, and none of them costs anything.
Can your landlord retaliate?
Not lawfully. Applying for a Rent Repayment Order is not a ground for possession, and since 1 May 2026 the section 21 “no fault” route no longer exists. If a landlord responds by locking you out, cutting off services or harassing you, those are criminal offences in their own right — and separate grounds for a further claim.
Where to go next
- What is a Rent Repayment Order? — the full explainer
- How to tell if your home was an unlicensed HMO
- How to apply
- Time limits
Or just ask us. Send the address and the dates you lived there and we will tell you whether a licence was required, whether there was one, and what a claim would be worth. It costs nothing and there is no obligation. Check your claim →
This article is general information about the law in England and is not legal advice about your own circumstances. Tribunal fees change — check the current figures on GOV.UK. The rules differ in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Think this applies to you? Checking whether your landlord needed a licence is free and takes about two minutes. Check your claim — free, no obligation.