Is Your Landlord Guilty of Harassment?

Is Your Landlord Guilty of Harassment?

Certain landlord actions are illegal. This includes any attempt by a landlord to harass their tenants. Learn if your landlord could be guilty of harassment.

What Is Landlord Harassment?

Landlord harassment is the attempt by a landlord to pressure or intimidate a tenant using aggressive methods. These actions are intended to disrupt the quiet, peaceful enjoyment of the rental unit by the tenant, force the tenant to move from the unit or force the tenant to refrain from pursuing a legal right they have.

Reasons a Landlord Might Harass a Tenant

There are many reasons a landlord might harass a tenant, and none of them are legal. In general, harassment is done to get a tenant to do something the landlord wants. This could include moving out following certain rules, paying their rent or complaining less. A landlord could also harass a tenant out of anger for a prior action the tenant committed, such as complaining to a government agency about a maintenance issue at the property.

Don’t Agree With Member of a Certain Class: Another reason a landlord may want a tenant to move is the tenant is a member of a class of people the landlord does not like. This could be based on their religion, nationality, gender, disability or even the fact that they have children.

Tenant Complaints: A landlord may wish to get a tenant that he or she sees as ‘annoying’ out of the property. The tenant could constantly be calling the landlord with a new complaint and the landlord has had enough.

Entering Without Warning: tenant laws require a landlord to give a tenant proper notice before the landlord can enter the tenant’s apartment. Emergencies are an exception to this rule. Landlords who enter a tenant’s property without warning or prior approval could be accused of harassment.

Shutting Off Utilities: rental properties have an implied warranty of habitability. This means that tenants have the right to live in a safe home that includes certain basic necessities in order to survive, such as running water, sewer and heat in the winter.

Cutting Off Amenities That Were Included in Lease Agreement: A landlord may try to make conditions at the rental property uncomfortable to get the tenant to move. This could include taking away a tenant’s parking spot or cutting off their access to laundry services.

Refusing to Make Repairs/Perform Maintenance: A landlord could attempt to force a tenant out by making the conditions at the property uncomfortable by refusing to make repairs to the unit or perform requested or necessary maintenance.

Changing the Locks: A landlord may change the locks on common area doors or on the actual entry doors to the tenant’s unit or even barricade these doors in order to get the tenant to move out of the property.

Removing Possessions From Unit: Another bold intimidation tactic by landlords is to physically move a tenant’s possessions out of the rental property.

Verbally Threatening the Tenant: A landlord may use their words to intimidate the tenant. These threats could be made over the phone, in person or in writing, such as in text messages, emails or written letters.

Physically Threatening the Tenant: A landlord could try to pressure a tenant using physical harassment. This could include using their body to block a tenant’s exit from a room, getting in a tenant’s face or even laying their actual hands on the tenant.

Refusing to Accept a Rent Payment: A landlord may attempt to intimidate a tenant into moving or threaten the tenant to take back a complaint by refusing to accept the tenant’s rent payment.

Filing False Charges Against the Tenant: Another form of harassment involves a landlord filing false charges against a tenant, such as falsely stating the tenant violated a no-pets policy, in an attempt to evict the tenant.

Filing a Fake Eviction Against the Tenant: A landlord could try to get the tenant to move by sending a fake eviction notice to the tenant. For example, the notice may state that the tenant is being evicted and only has three days to move out of the unit.

Building work, Related Nuisances: If a landlord begins construction with the sole purpose of disturbing the tenant, this could be considered harassment. It could include working during early morning or late at night, leaving construction debris everywhere or physically blocking the entrance to the tenant’s apartment.

Sexual Harassment: A landlord could harass a tenant by making crude remarks to the tenant or other obscene sexual advances.

Document the Incident: If a tenant believes he or she is being harassed by their landlord, he or she should document any alleged incidents that occur including the date, time and nature of the harassment. The tenant should keep any evidence of the harassment, including a voicemail, text message, email, letter, photo or video that captures the incident.

Contact the police

If you’re being harassed and you feel you're in danger you can contact the police.

If you think you’re being harassed because of your disability, race, religion, transgender identity or sexual orientation, you can report the harassment to the police as a hate incident or crime.

You can find details of your local police station on the Police.UK website.

Take action under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997

Harassment is both a criminal offence and a civil action under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.

This means that someone can be prosecuted in the criminal courts if they harass you. It also means you can take action against the person in the civil courts.

When is something harassment under the Act?

Generally speaking harassment is behaviour which causes you distress or alarm.

The Act also says you must have experienced at least two incidents by the sameperson or group of people for it to be harassment.

It's the courts that decide if something is harassment under the Act. The courts will look at whether most people or a reasonable person would think the behaviour amounts to harassment.

When can you take civil court action about harassment?

If you’ve been the victim of harassment you can take action in the civil courts against the person harassing you.

You need to make your claim within six years of when the harassment happened.

You can still take civil court action even if the person harassing you hasn’t been found guilty of a criminal offence.

What can the court do if you take civil action about harassment?

The court can make an order or injunction that the person harassing you must stop their behaviour. If they don’t stop harassing you after the court has made an injunction against them, it's a criminal offence and they can be prosecuted in the criminal courts.

You can also ask the court for compensation if you’ve suffered financial or emotional loss - for example, if the harassment has made you feel very anxious or distressed.

If you’re thinking about taking court action, you should get advice from an experienced adviser - for example, at a Citizens Advice local office.

Taking legal action

Harassment by a landlord

If a landlord harasses you this could be a criminal offence under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977.

When is it harassment by a landlord?

The criminal offence of harassment is when your landlord, or anyone acting on their behalf - for example, an estate agent - does something deliberately that interferes with the enjoyment of your home and is intended to make you leave, or take away your rights.

Examples of harassment include:

interfering with or cutting off services, like water, gas or electricity

visiting your home regularly without warning, especially at night

using threatening behaviour or being physically violent