When Can Your Landlord Enter the Property?

Every tenant has an implied legal right to quiet enjoyment of their home. This right is implied into all tenancy agreements by law, regardless of what the contract says. Quiet enjoyment does not mean absence of noise — it means your right to occupy your home peacefully, without interference from your landlord or anyone acting on their behalf.

Your landlord retains ownership of the property, but once a tenancy is granted, you have the right to exclusive possession. The landlord cannot enter without your permission except in limited circumstances. Any clause in a tenancy agreement that purports to allow unrestricted entry rights for the landlord is likely to be unenforceable as an unfair term under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

Breaching your right to quiet enjoyment — for example, by turning up unannounced repeatedly, changing the locks, or removing belongings — is a serious matter. It may amount to unlawful harassment under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977.

Your landlord may enter the property in the following circumstances:

• Repairs and inspections: With at least 24 hours' written notice, at a reasonable time of day. Under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, landlords have a right to enter to view the condition of the property and carry out repairs — but only with proper notice and at reasonable times.
• Gas safety inspections: Required annually by law. Your landlord can apply to court to gain entry if you unreasonably refuse access for a safety inspection.
• Viewings for sale or re-letting: Only with your consent and reasonable notice. You are within your rights to decline viewings, though many tenancy agreements include a clause permitting them during the notice period.
• Emergencies: If there is an immediate risk to life or serious property damage — for example, a burst pipe or suspected gas leak — the landlord (or a contractor) may enter without notice.

Outside these situations, you are entitled to refuse entry. Simply demanding access or visiting unannounced is not a legal right and you are not obliged to let the landlord in.

If your landlord enters without notice or permission (outside a genuine emergency), keep a record of the date, time, and what happened. Write to your landlord citing your right to quiet enjoyment and stating that any further unauthorised entry is unacceptable.

If unauthorised entry continues, this may constitute harassment under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977. Harassment of a residential occupier is a criminal offence. You can report it to your local council's housing enforcement team, contact the police if you feel threatened, or seek an injunction through the civil courts.

Citizens Advice and Shelter can help you draft letters and advise on next steps. If you are considering legal action, keep detailed records of every incident — dates, times, any witnesses, and any written communications from the landlord.

The 24-hour notice requirement has exceptions. A landlord may enter without notice in a genuine emergency — for example, a gas leak, flood, fire, or structural collapse threatening safety. The emergency must be real and immediate; a landlord cannot claim "emergency" to conduct a routine inspection or show the property to prospective tenants.

If you share accommodation with your landlord (you are a lodger, not a tenant), your right to exclude the landlord is more limited. Lodgers do not have the same security of tenure as tenants with an assured shorthold tenancy. However, even lodgers are entitled to reasonable privacy in their own room. If your landlord enters your room without permission when there is no emergency, this may constitute harassment under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977, which is a criminal offence carrying a potential fine or imprisonment.

The Renters' Rights Act 2025 strengthens the right to quiet enjoyment in a number of ways, and also introduces new provisions that affect how and when landlords may enter a property.

Entry rights under the reformed regime

The core rules on entry — 24 hours' written notice, at a reasonable time, for a legitimate purpose — remain unchanged under the Renters' Rights Act 2025. However, the Act reinforces the principle that tenants have the right to occupy their home as a home, not merely as premises owned by their landlord. Any clause in a tenancy agreement purporting to permit entry rights beyond those implied by law remains unenforceable under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

Inspections and the Private Rented Sector Ombudsman

The Act creates a mandatory Private Rented Sector Ombudsman that landlords must join. Tenants who suffer repeated breaches of quiet enjoyment — including persistent unannounced visits or excessive inspection requests — will be able to bring complaints to the Ombudsman as an alternative to court proceedings. The Ombudsman can award compensation and require the landlord to change their behaviour.

Gas safety access — the landlord's counter-rights

While tenants have the right to quiet enjoyment, landlords have a legal obligation to carry out annual gas safety checks. If a tenant unreasonably refuses to allow access for a statutory safety inspection, the landlord can apply to the court for an access order. However, a tenant is entitled to require reasonable notice and to agree a convenient time — a single refusal of an unreasonably short-notice request is not "unreasonable refusal." Courts will consider all the circumstances before granting an access order. Always respond to inspection requests in writing and propose an alternative time if the original proposal is inconvenient.

Protecting yourself when landlords claim "emergency" entry

Landlords sometimes claim an emergency as a pretext for entry without notice. A genuine emergency requires an imminent, real risk — not a pre-planned inspection dressed up as urgent. If your landlord enters claiming emergency but the circumstances did not warrant it, document this in writing immediately. Repeated false claims of emergency may themselves constitute harassment. Report to your council's housing enforcement team with your written record of incidents.