Coronavirus: Student accommodation in England

Most students live away from home during term time in either university owned or privately rented accommodation. During the coronavirus pandemic Government measures significantly impacted on how students live – lockdowns, closure of campuses and rules around the movement of students resulted in many students leaving their rented accommodation and returning home – in many cases leaving their accommodation before letting contracts had expired. This gave rise to numerous questions about liability for rent, refunds and evictions. Below are some of these FAQs.

Many university-owned halls of residence and privately run Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) have allowed students who have left university accommodation due to the coronavirus to terminate contracts early without any charges. Some have waived or discounted rent for all students, regardless of whether they are still in their accommodation. (Office for Students briefing: Student accommodation (April 2020)). Students should contact their university for advice.

If a student thinks that their accommodation provider is treating them unfairly, they can raise a complaint under the accommodation codes of practice as long as their provider is a code member. The codes can be found at:

• thesac.org.uk/;
• unipol.org.uk/the-code/how-to-complain; and
• https://www.nrla.org.uk/about-us/code-of-practice.

Students with a private rented tenancy agreement (contract), as a rule, remain liable for rent payments until their contracts expire. See section 1 of Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance for Landlords and Tenants.

Some landlords/agents negotiated rent reductions or agreed to early release from contracts for students but there was no obligation on them to do so.

Students may be entitled to refunds from certain accommodation providers depending on the terms of their contract and their particular circumstances. If students need help, organisations such as Citizens Advice offer a free service, providing information and support.

Information published by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) gives guidance on the COVID-19 outbreak’s effects on consumer contracts and may be helpful to students. The guidance sets out the CMA’s view on how the law operates to help consumers understand their contractual rights and to help businesses treat their customers fairly.

Whether or not a student can get a refund/discount will depend on the university halls of residence provider. Students should contact them directly to find out.

Library briefing , Coronavirus: student accommodation issues, 25 January 2021 discusses the issue of refunds in detail.

The Government didn’t introduce specific financial help for student rent payments. The student maintenance loan is intended to help cover living costs while at university, including rent. When asked about assistance with rent payments, the Government said students would receive scheduled tuition and maintenance loan payments for the remainder of the 2019/20 academic year. These payments continued in the 2020/21 academic year irrespective of where the student was living.

Students who are struggling to pay their rent, e.g. because they cannot work should contact the accommodation provider (university, halls of residence manager or private landlord/agent) to find out what, if any, arrangements can be made.

Students may also be able to access help from their university’s hardship funds. The Department for Education has worked with the Office for Students to clarify that providers are able to use existing funds, worth around £256 million for academic year 2020/21, towards hardship support. The Government has also made available a further £85m to support those that need it most, particularly disadvantaged students. The funding has been distributed to approved fee cap providers, who have flexibility in how they distribute the funding to students in a way that will best prioritise those in greatest need. [PQ 25161 30 June 2021 ]

Any student who is worried about their financial position should contact their university to find out what support is available. Certain students may be able to access benefits, including assistance with rent payments. Government guidance: Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance for Landlords and Tenants, provides information for private tenants who are struggling to pay their rent.

Some students didn’t leave their privately rented homes and struggled to pay the rent. Government measures ensured from 29 August 2020 to 31 May 2021 most tenants in the private sector were entitled to at least six months’ notice (some exceptions applied for substantial rent arrears and anti-social behaviour). Notice periods returned to their pre-pandemic levels on 1 October 2021.

When a notice expires, the landlord must seek a court order to evict. There were restrictions on the enforcement of eviction warrants by bailiffs up to 31 May 2021 (some exceptions applied). Evicting a tenant without a court order can amount to illegal eviction, a criminal offence. Tenants in this position should seek urgent assistance from organisations such as the local authority or Shelter.

The Commons Library constituency casework page on Coronavirus: Advice on home moves provides guidance on when moving house is permitted during the coronavirus pandemic.

• Office for Students: Student accommodation
• University websites
• Shelter: Housing advice: coronavirus (COVID-19)
• MoneySavingExpert: Can students claim a rent refund as they’re told not to return to uni? What you need to know, 4 January 2021