What does the new tenants fee ban mean for tenants and landlords?

Understanding the Tenant's Fee Ban and just what does it mean? 
We have all heard about, knew it was coming, and now that it has finally arrived.

It is time to clear the headache and get clear on just what the Tenant's Fee Ban means for real, so we have put together this short insightful guide to help clear your mind and set you straight!

In the last few weeks we have just seen a complete ban on all Tenants fees, preventing the unnecessary charging of in many cases extortionate fees imposed by some landlords and letting agents over the past years for the services of referencing, completing inventories and drawing up contracts across England, Wales and Scotland.

What is the Tenants Fee Act?

The Tenants Fee Act was launched last year in England on June 1st 2019, followed shortly by Wales on September 1st, thus preventing tenants having to pay to view properties, have their references checked or the hundreds of pounds each time they renewed their tenancy agreement for their home.

The new turn in legislation brought in on the June 1st 2020 means that all who have signed a contract before June 1st 2019 could still have been charged a fee for their contract or end of tenancy, however these fees are now something of the past.

It also means that from this date, landlords can only charge a maximum of 5 weeks worth of rent on any Tenancy agreement.

The Lettings Fee Ban being extended to all tenancies means that renters who have originally paid a deposit of six weeks on tenancy agreement will be entitled to a sixth of their money back from their landlord or managing agent (unless they pay in excess of £50,000 in rent per year) this is now the landlord or managing agents responsibility to inform you of your over payment.

What Tenant's Fees can now be charged by Landlords or Letting Agent?

Although the Lettings fee ban has prevented Landlords and agents from charging uncapped fees, the following fees can still be charged:

The fees ban does not affect the tenants requirements to pay for their utility and council tax bills if this is stated within their tenancy agreement.

What fees Are Now banned?

The following are a list of fees that are no longer allowed to be charged under the Tenants Fees Act: