Landlord Entering Without Permission: What To Do
You come home and something's been moved. Or a neighbour mentions someone was in the flat on Tuesday. Or your landlord texts afterwards to say they popped in to check the boiler.
They own the building. They don't have a right to walk into your home, and doing it repeatedly can amount to harassment under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977, which is a criminal offence.
This is about what to do when it's already happened. For the underlying principle, see your right to quiet enjoyment, and for how routine visits should work, rental inspections.
The short version
- 24 hours' written notice, at a reasonable time. That's the minimum, and you can refuse a specific time.
- Notice is not the same as permission. Giving notice and letting themselves in anyway is still a breach.
- Genuine emergencies are the exception, and only genuine ones.
- Write it down every time. The pattern is what makes it actionable.
What the rules actually are
Every tenancy carries an implied covenant of quiet enjoyment. Your landlord has granted you exclusive possession, and having done so they can't come and go.
Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 gives them a right of access to inspect the condition and carry out repairs, on at least 24 hours' notice in writing, at a reasonable time of day.
Two things follow that people don't always realise:
Notice is a request, not a key. If you say Tuesday at 10 doesn't work, they should agree another time. Serving notice and turning up regardless, or letting themselves in because you weren't there, is a breach.
Holding a key changes nothing. Landlords normally keep one, and it's for emergencies and agreed visits, not for dropping in.
The exception
Real emergencies. A fire, a flood, a gas leak, a structural collapse, or a genuine reason to believe someone inside is at risk. Then they can enter without notice, and should tell you immediately afterwards what happened and why.
What isn't an emergency: a viewing, a routine inspection, a meter reading, showing the property to a prospective buyer, dropping something off, or checking whether you have a pet.
When it's already happened
Do these in order, and don't skip the first one.
1. Write it down while it's fresh
Date, time, who entered, how you know, what was moved, whether you were given notice, and how you felt about it. A contemporaneous note is evidence. A memory two months later isn't.
Photograph anything disturbed. Keep any text where they mention being there, which they often do without realising it's the problem.
2. Raise it in writing, once, calmly
Email, not a phone call. Something like:
"I understand you entered the property on 14 August. I hadn't been given notice and hadn't agreed to a visit. Please can you confirm the reason, and going forward give me at least 24 hours' notice in writing and agree a time with me. I'm happy to arrange access for anything you need."
That does three jobs: puts them on notice, records the incident, and keeps you visibly reasonable. Plenty of first incidents are thoughtlessness rather than intimidation, and they stop here.
3. If it happens again, escalate formally
Reference the previous email and the previous incident. State plainly that repeated entry without consent may amount to harassment under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977. Say you'll report it if it continues.
Copy in the agent if there is one, and open a formal complaint with them. The Property Ombudsman covers agent conduct.
4. Report it
Council tenancy relations or environmental health. This is the route people don't know about. Councils have tenancy relations officers whose job is exactly this, and a letter from the council changes behaviour far more reliably than one from you. Free.
The police, if you feel threatened or unsafe, or if entry comes with intimidation. Harassment of a residential occupier is a criminal offence, and they will often treat it as a civil matter, so ask for a crime reference number and be specific about the criminal provision.
The court. You can seek an injunction to stop it, and damages for breach of quiet enjoyment. Get advice first. Free advice routes.
Can you change the locks?
The honest answer is that it depends and you should ask first.
Most agreements require permission to change locks, and doing it without asking is a breach of tenancy, though usually a minor one if you keep the original and reinstate it at the end.
The safer sequence: ask in writing, explaining why, and offer them a copy of the new key. That last part matters, because it shows you aren't denying legitimate access, only unannounced access. A landlord who refuses a key copy is refusing something reasonable and you now have that in writing too.
If you are frightened, personal safety comes first. Speak to a tenancy relations officer or Shelter before acting, because there may be a faster route.
What you can't be evicted for
Worth stating plainly, because fear of retaliation is why most of this goes unreported.
Section 21 no-fault eviction was abolished on 1 May 2026. A landlord can no longer respond to a complaint about access with a two-month notice. They need a specified ground and have to prove it in court.
And even with a valid ground, only a court order ends your tenancy and only county court bailiffs can remove you. Anyone changing the locks on you or removing your belongings is committing an offence. What a valid eviction looks like.
Rent repayment orders and compensation
Unlawful eviction and harassment are among the offences that can support a rent repayment order at the First-tier Tribunal, which can award up to twelve months' rent back to you.
Separately, breach of quiet enjoyment can be pursued in the county court for damages. Both need evidence, which is the whole reason for step one. Claiming money back from your landlord.
Keeping it proportionate
Not every unannounced visit is harassment. A landlord who knocked once, was let in by a housemate, and apologised when told is careless rather than sinister, and treating it as a campaign will make your tenancy worse for no gain.
The things that turn it serious: it keeps happening after you've asked; it happens when you're out; it happens at night; it comes with pressure to leave or to accept a rent rise; or you feel unsafe. Any of those, escalate properly and involve the council.
The honest summary
24 hours' written notice, at a reasonable time, and notice isn't the same as permission. Log every incident with the date. Raise it once in writing, calmly. If it repeats, go to the council's tenancy relations team, because that's free and it works.
And you can complain without fearing a retaliatory notice in a way that simply wasn't true before May 2026.
And when it's over, review your landlord. Someone who walks into people's homes uninvited will do it to the next tenant, and a review is the only way they'll know first.
This guide covers England and reflects the position at August 2026. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland differ. General information rather than legal advice; get advice from Shelter, Citizens Advice or a housing solicitor for your own situation. Sources: Protection from Eviction Act 1977, Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 11, GOV.UK, private renting rights and responsibilities.