Today the Housing Minister, Robert Jenrick, has announced his plans to “reopen, restart and renew the housing market” allowing property viewing for the first time since lock down.
As a tenant you may be breaching your tenancy agreement by refusing access, but no one can enter your property without your permission or a court order. Your landlord should not be pressurising you to open your home if you do not want to leave:
- Tenant’s safety should be letting agents’ and landlord’s first priority
- This guidance for landlords and letting agents is to help them safely let empty properties, or properties which tenants are voluntarily vacating. While broader measures to protect tenants during the coronavirus outbreak remain in place, letting agents and landlords should endeavour to avoid ending tenancies where the tenant wants and is able to stay.
- If possible, necessary repairs, gas and electrical safety checks should be conducted in the period between a property being vacated and a new tenant moving in. If this is not possible and visits are needed to an occupied property, this should be done by appointment with measures put in place to ensure physical contact is minimised, for example with residents staying in another room during the visit.
Remember that harassment ( i.e acts which are likely to interfere with the peace and comfort of those living in the property and aimed to get you to leave or prevent you exercising your tenancy rights) is a criminal offence.