The tenant should contact the Police if the landlord (or associates) has used verbal threats and/or physical violence towards him/her as part of harassment and/or illegal eviction. The tenant should also contact the Local Authority Tenancy Relations Officer (TRIO) who should ensure that private tenants are not illegally evicted or harassed and has the power to bring criminal proceedings against the landlord in the Magistrates Court which can impose a fine or up to 6 month’s imprisonment on any landlord found guilty of illegal eviction and/or harassment. If a case proceeds to the Crown Court, then the maximum sentence is an unlimited fine and a sentence of up to 2 years in prison.
The tenant will still be able to proceed with a claim against the landlord in the County Court even if they have been reinstated in the property under the following courses of action:
