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Stage 1: Before you start court proceedings (accelerated possession)

The documents contained in this pack include everything you will need before you can start court proceedings to claim back possession of your property if it is rented using an assured shorthold tenancy agreement .

Begin the process by using the document 'Notice under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988' along with its associated covering letter. (Please note that you cannot use this section 21 notice if you have not protected your tenants' deposit in a government-authorised tenancy deposit protection scheme and sent them notice of the scheme that you are using. If you have not yet done this, you should use the document 'Notice to tenant(s) of deposit protection scheme' first.)

Once you have correctly served the section 21 notice, use Form N215 - Certificate of service to record how and when the section 21 notice was served.

If the tenants do not move out of the property in the time stipulated in the section 21 notice, you can move to stage two in the process by using our pack 'Stage two: Start court proceedings for possession (accelerated possession)'. 

  Pack documents:

•    Notice to tenant(s) of deposit protection scheme
•    Notice under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988
•    Covering letter for section 21 notice
•    Form N215 - Certificate of service

Stage 1: Before you start court proceedings (accelerated possession)

Compatible region(s): England

The documents contained in this pack include everything you will need before you can start court proceedings to claim back possession of your property if it is rented using an assured shorthold tenancy agreement .

Begin the process by using the document 'Notice under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988' along with its associated covering letter. (Please note that you cannot use this section 21 notice if you have not protected your tenants' deposit in a government-authorised tenancy deposit protection scheme and sent them notice of the scheme that you are using. If you have not yet done this, you should use the document 'Notice to tenant(s) of deposit protection scheme' first.)

Once you have correctly served the section 21 notice, use Form N215 - Certificate of service to record how and when the section 21 notice was served.

If the tenants do not move out of the property in the time stipulated in the section 21 notice, you can move to stage two in the process by using our pack 'Stage two: Start court proceedings for possession (accelerated possession)'. 

  Pack documents:

•    Notice to tenant(s) of deposit protection scheme
•    Notice under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988
•    Covering letter for section 21 notice
•    Form N215 - Certificate of service

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Accelerated procedure pack flowchart
Notice to tenant(s) of deposit protection scheme (Guidance Notes)
Use this document to meet your legal requirements after taking a deposit from a tenant (now known as contract holders in Wales). It tells tenants which deposit protection scheme is used and, together with the scheme documents that must be provided with this notice, gives them the 'prescribed information' required by law.

Protect the deposit and give this notice and the scheme documents to the tenant within 30 days of the tenant paying the deposit. At the same time, you should also send it (together with the scheme documents) to anyone who paid the deposit for the tenant and, in order to avoid any dispute, the tenant's guarantors (if any).

Covering letter for section 21 notice (Guidance Notes)
This document creates a covering letter for a landlord serving a notice seeking possession under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 on their tenants. To use this document, you will need to have details of the tenancy agreement to hand. You will also need to attach the notice to the letter.
Form N215 - Certificate of service (Guidance Notes)
The N215 certificate of service should generally be completed after having sent any court documents, such as claim forms or applications to the court, or other important documents to an opponent after (or sometimes before) court proceedings have begun. The form provides evidence that the documents have been served on an opponent. It is only suitable for claims within England & Wales.
Notice under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 (Guidance Notes)
This is the formal notice that you must serve on (i.e. give to) your tenant to tell them that you're seeking possession of your property under section 21 of the Housing Act 1988.

Please note that this document can only be used in relation to properties in England, where an assured shorthold tenancy agreement is in place.

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