Tenant has moved in with a dog

SueDebt

It's a long story but I have a tenant who has moved in with a dog even though the tenancy agreement specifies no pets.

My estate agent (who provided the tenancy agreement) says that part of the agreement is not enforceable nowadays.

Is anybody aware of a change in the law which means that clause is not allowed or enforceable?

user1977

No. Ask your agent to explain why they think it's unenforceable - and if it is, why they haven't updated their agreement?

Scotbot

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/can-my-landlord-prevent-me-from-keeping-a-pet/

Your agent is partly right. A change has been announced but not yet come into effect. See the link

However it seems the agent may have told the tenant a pet is OK. 

SadieO

I believe the government has recently recommended a model tenancy agreement in which there is not a blanket ban on pets. But landlords aren't obliged to use it. What I do think has changed recently is that you can't ask for extra deposit to cover pets. 

SueDebt

Scotbot said:

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/can-my-landlord-prevent-me-from-keeping-a-pet/

Your agent is partly right. A change has been announced but not yet come into effect. See the link

However it seems the agent may have told the tenant a pet is OK. 

Thanks (and to the other two people who have replied).

That link (and the one to the Tenancy Deposit Scheme which it links to) is very useful.

london21

Your agent seems to have informed your tenant their pet is ok.

The eviction process can be long, find an alternative agent going forward. 

RAS

Just to check. Is the property leasehold? If so, any restrictions on pets?

grumiofoundation

SueDebt said:

It's a long story but I have a tenant who has moved in with a dog even though the tenancy agreement specifies no pets.

My estate agent (who provided the tenancy agreement) says that part of the agreement is not enforceable nowadays.

Is anybody aware of a change in the law which means that clause is not allowed or enforceable?

Why don't you want a dog living in the property?

I believe legally a landlord cannot reasonably refuse a tenant requesting to have a pet. Such as if the lease of the property forbidding one.

You could serve a section 8 notice for breach of the tenancy agreement. If the tenant refuses to leave (as is their legal right) there is no guarantee a judge would agree with you. They may determine that it is not reasonable of you to refuse the tenants a pet.  

Possibly as above your agent said they could have a pet when showing them round, but didn't update the tenancy agreement.  In which case any action to evict them (see below) would fail if they can prove this.

For example we once had a tenancy agreement saying we weren't allowed to hand washing on the balcony. However since the property didn't have a balcony would have been hard for the landlord to evict based on that breach. 

Or possibly your agent is trying to save you the time and effort of trying to evict them?

ripplyuk

You haven’t said what problems (if any) the dog is causing. Think carefully before starting the eviction process. It is long, stressful and expensive. There’s no guarantee you’ll get any of the costs back. Also, I can’t see any judge evicting a tenant who is still in a fixed term contract, simply because you don’t like dogs. 

macman

You need a new agent: they are talking nonsense. I'd speak to the tenant direct and ask what the agent said to them about dogs, if anything.

housebuyer143

grumiofoundation said:

SueDebt said:

It's a long story but I have a tenant who has moved in with a dog even though the tenancy agreement specifies no pets.

My estate agent (who provided the tenancy agreement) says that part of the agreement is not enforceable nowadays.

Is anybody aware of a change in the law which means that clause is not allowed or enforceable?

Why don't you want a dog living in the property?

I believe legally a landlord cannot reasonably refuse a tenant requesting to have a pet. Such as if the lease of the property forbidding one.

You could serve a section 8 notice for breach of the tenancy agreement. If the tenant refuses to leave (as is their legal right) there is no guarantee a judge would agree with you. They may determine that it is not reasonable of you to refuse the tenants a pet.  

Possibly as above your agent said they could have a pet when showing them round, but didn't update the tenancy agreement.  In which case any action to evict them (see below) would fail if they can prove this.

For example we once had a tenancy agreement saying we weren't allowed to hand washing on the balcony. However since the property didn't have a balcony would have been hard for the landlord to evict based on that breach. 

Or possibly your agent is trying to save you the time and effort of trying to evict them?

I worked at an agency and they did this exact thing. Told the tenant they could have a dog and didn't ask the landlord when they moved in. 
Landlord found out about a month later, applied for a section 8 and actually got possession. Felt very sorry for those tenants.