Rented housing disputes as a private tenant
There are steps you can take to resolve a dispute with your landlord.
The process is different if you rent from a letting agent. Check what standards letting agents must meet and how to make a complaint.
Talk to your landlord
Always try to talk to your landlord first to resolve a dispute.
If you take legal action later, you’ll need to show you tried to resolve things informally first.
Get independent dispute resolution
You can get help to resolve a dispute from an independent dispute specialist.
Check how mediation or arbitration can help resolve a dispute.
Tenancy deposit dispute resolution
At the end of your tenancy, you can resolve a deposit dispute through the tenancy deposit scheme. There’s no cost to use this dispute resolution process.
Check the rules for getting your deposit back at the end of your tenancy.
Taking legal action at a tribunal
You can take some disputes to a tribunal. It’s called the First-Tier Tribunal for Scotland (Housing and Property Chamber).
At a tribunal hearing, you can:
- represent yourself
- have someone go with you to support you or speak on your behalf
There’s no cost to apply to the tribunal.
Disputes the tribunal can help resolve
Check the rules and what the tribunal can do about:
- your landlord not doing repairs
- your landlord accessing the property
- a rent increase you do not agree with
- an unprotected deposit
- not getting the right paperwork from your landlord
If your landlord gets complaints about antisocial behaviour
Your landlord must deal with any antisocial behaviour in the property. If they do not, they can lose their landlord registration. This stops them legally letting out the property.
If they write to you or try to discuss the problem, try to agree with them what will change so the complaints stop.
They can take steps to evict you if the behaviour does not stop.
The local council can also take action against you. This could include giving you or your visitors an antisocial behaviour order.
Getting advice on a dispute
You can get free independent advice from:
You can also get legal advice from a solicitor. If you’re on a low income you may qualify for legal aid.
Ending the tenancy and moving out
If you decide to move out to end the dispute, check how to end your tenancy correctly.
If your landlord wants to evict you
Your landlord can only evict you for certain reasons and must follow rules to evict you legally. Check your eviction rights.