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[jpkeates]

That's no longer true, it is now simply two months.
Three for the next three months....

[jpkeates]

One of the tests in Johnson v Old for whether something was rent or not was that if the landlord demanded payment for a period, the tenant would know whether they had paid or not.

If the tenant doesn't know which period the rent is for, you couldn't meet that test.

[jpkeates]

I wouldn't have expected the tenant to have informed you as a courtesy or otherwise.
As long as the tenant pays the rent that's owed, I think that's reasonable.

I think I'd just wait and see if she pays the arrears and carries on as before.

[jpkeates]

I believe that that is correct.

There is one 4-month limit per lease that begins with the first tenancy, so a follow on tenancy would only be affected if it begins within the 4 months.

[jpkeates]

10a means that you can't let on a room only basis whether you live there or not. Nor is there any mechanism for the lessor to consent to such an arrangement.
You can't do what you want to do and have been doing.
Technically the person you are allowing to stay there rent free is probably...

[jpkeates]

If you don't live there, the occupants can't be lodgers and are probably tenants (regardless of what your agreement says).
So you would need to use an AST which provides for shared use of some space and exclusive use of other space.

With a couple and another person it's also an HMO,...

[jpkeates]

Unfortunately, the forum isn't very helpful when using photos and that's microscopic.

If you are living in the property, it isn't possible for any arrangement you have with another occupant renting space from you to be an AST.

Most leases won't allow you to let only part of...

[jpkeates]

You'll need to exhaust the complaints procedure of whichever redress scheme the agent belongs to before the TPO get involved (unless the redress scheme is the TPO).
https://selfserve.tpos.co.uk...

[jpkeates]

Many tenancy agreements preclude the use of the deposit to pay rent.
I wouldn't agree to it if the tenant asked either....

[jpkeates]

The last month isn't knowable.
The end of a tenancy by a possession order executed by bailiffs can happen on short notice and a rent due date may not have occurred since the last rent was paid.
A fixed term can be ended by surrender or replacing the tenancy agreement with a new one, so even...

[jpkeates]

There's a big difference between pushing for a longer contract and misrepresenting both sides of an agreement to improve income.
The former is a sharp commercial practice and the latter is probably fraud.

Given the potential cost, I'd suggest a solicitor might cost effective.
...

[jpkeates]

A periodic tenancy will usually be a replacement tenancy.
Not all replacement tenancies are periodic.

For example, a landlord and tenant who, every year sign a new 12 month fixed term tenancy would have a series of replacement tenancies which are not periodic.


...

[jpkeates]

If your lease "forbids underletting without the prior written consenst of the landlord except where assured shorthold tenancies are granted for period of under one year". You have been breaching the covenants of your lease.

What the freeholder can do in the event of your breaching...

[jpkeates]

Giving false information to you or the agent isn't necessarily related to not paying rent.
Fraud is quite a complex crime to define - the deception and the dishonesty have to be simultaneous.

So if the tenant gave false information in order to secure the tenancy intending to pay rent...

[jpkeates]

If you and the tenant feel misled the agent might find it difficult to enforce the charge, even if it's contractually due.

And it all depends on the wording of your agreement with the agent.

[jpkeates]

No, and it's likely that such a register would be illegal.

What benefit did the tenant obtain from their deception (assuming it was deception)....

[jpkeates]

Hopefully the other tenant will be OK with you moving out and his girlfriend moving in.

The landlord has offered that and isn't happy with her being there otherwise.

But other than doing something over-dramatic like physically excluding her (which isn't a realistic option long...

[jpkeates]

The courts aren't processing claims at the moment, so the notices will simply time out in July and need to be reserved when there is some prospect of proceeding.

You might want to consider a small claim for both sets of arrears in the meantime.

[jpkeates]

Your tenants might be in breach of contract, but they haven't done anything illegal.

[jpkeates]

The emails will be fine.