UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi,
I have had a good tenant for 7 years who has paid on time and only raised issues that I should and have resolved, therefore even though she is not on full market rent, I am happy to keep her.
The issue is it looks like she is going to break up with her partner. She wants him to leave and he is refusing.
The lady is the only one on the tenant agreement, but her partner has lived there all the time.
If he won't leave then she will. I am happy for her to remain as she is the one who pays the bills and she has indicated that she would like to stay. Therefore I need to understand what could happen.
1) Can she force him to leave (I am happy to get the locks changed) - then no issue as she stays.
2) If she cannot force him to leave then she will leave - in this case I do not believe he will be able to pay the rent (or any bills)
- a) She could give 1 months notice - then does he had to leave or I am left with someone in the house without a tenancy agreement and how would I start eviction procedures.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can give

1 - yes she can lock him out of the house (and use reasonable force to remove him). She could also go to court to exclude him. She has permission to be in the property (the tenancy), he only has her permission to be there and, when that is withdrawn, he becomes a trespasser. It is much simpler for her to exclude him while a tenant than any other route.

2 - You should explain that if she leaves and he stays, the costs of removing him (which might be considerable) will  be passed on to her. If she gives notice, when it expires the tenancy ends and the other occupant is then, again, a trespasser. However, for you to exclude them (and you have the same rights as she does at that point) is much more complicated, the police might get involved (and their grasp of the law in this area isn't great) and you might end up getting a court order to remove him. That can take a long time and cost a lot of money.

While it's not true, you might point out that she can't give valid notice if there's no vacant possession at the end of it, she might believe you (unless she gets some legal advice).

Thanks jpkeates for your very quick and useful reply