The number of repossession claims brought against private renters in the courts following section 21 no fault evictions reached 7,962 last quarter, new data released the Ministry of Justice has revealed.
This brings the total number of such claims issued since 2019, when the Government pledged to abolish section 21 evictions, to a total of 96,927.
The news comes the day after the Renters (Reform) Bill, the legislation intended to abolish section 21, had its second reading in the House of Lords.
In April renters’ groups announced they believe the bill “will be a failure in its current form” following repeated government concessions to the landlord lobby, arguing it “preserves the central power imbalance at the root of why renting in England is in crisis.”
Tom Darling, campaign manager of the Renters’ Reform Coalition, said: “These figures are a bleak illustration of the scale of England’s renting crisis – nearly 100,000 section 21 evictions taken through court since the government promised to abolish the practice in 2019.
“Out of control evictions and soaring rents are creating unprecedented levels of homelessness and social misery.
“Meanwhile the only piece of legislation which could improve private renting has been massively watered down after the government caved in to landlord interests.
“As currently drafted the Renters (Reform) Bill will fail to deliver for renters. The House of Lords offers a last opportunity to fix the bill and address our broken renting system – peers must support amendments that give England’s renters the security and peace of mind they have every right to.”
