Notice of Possession Grounds Guidance and Covering Letter

A plain-English guide to section 8 possession grounds and notice periods after the Renters’ Rights Act, with pre-service checklist, covering letter and certificate of service.

Editable Word document
10
10pages
Guidance notes included
aml consultancy solutions

Landlord & property

Notice of Possession Grounds Guidance and Covering Letter

About this document

What it’s for

Since section 21 “no fault” notices were abolished for private tenancies in England on 1 May 2026, landlords can only regain possession by serving a section 8 notice on the prescribed form and obtaining a court order on a statutory ground. This guide explains the grounds and notice periods, helps you avoid invalid notices, and gives you a covering letter and service record.

When to use it

  • Before deciding whether you have a ground for possession
  • When completing the prescribed form (this pack does not reproduce it)
  • When serving the notice and preparing for court

What’s inside

The document is laid out in the sections below. Each one comes with a plain-English guidance note explaining what it does and what to change.

  • Part 1 – The new framework
  • Part 2 – Grounds most relevant to private landlords
  • Choosing and combining grounds
  • The tenancy and the parties
  • Compliance
  • The notice
  • Evidence
  • Service
  • After the notice expires
  • Why I am serving this notice
  • What the notice means
  • Getting advice

How to complete it

  • Identify the ground(s) using Part 2 and check every condition
  • Download the current form from gov.uk and copy the ground wording exactly
  • Work through the checklist in Part 3 before you serve
  • Send the covering letter with the form and complete the certificate of service

Key points to check

  • The longest notice period of any ground used applies to the whole notice
  • Grounds 1 and 1A cannot be used in the first 12 months of a tenancy
  • A wrongly used ground or wrong form can be costly – take advice if in doubt

Our templates are professionally structured starting points for UK businesses, not legal advice. For anything complex, unusual or high-value, have your final version checked by a solicitor.

Included in the pack

Landlord & property

£20

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Editable Microsoft Word files

Guidance notes in every document

Written for UK businesses

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