On 1^st December 2017 jurisdiction for private sector tenancy related disputes transferred to the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland Housing and Property Chamber. The Tribunal is allocating up to two cases to be heard each day. Tribunal members have sufficient time and expertise to scrutinise the content of rent statements. Accordingly, it is now more important than ever to ensure rent statements are accurate.

If you are relying on rent arrears as a basis for eviction, or you wish to lodge an application for payment in relation to outstanding arrears, rent statements will be thoroughly scrutinised by the Tribunal.

The Tribunal will require a rent statement, as opposed to bank statements as these do not show an accurate representation of what has not been paid by the tenant.

What should a rent statement outline?

• A rent statement should relate purely to rent, there should be no miscellaneous charges such as service charges, council tax payments or utility payments.
• A rent statement should include the date rent is due, the date rent is received, the amount due, and amount received along with a column outlining the rent outstanding. It is important to ensure that the rent outstanding column has a running total of the arrears figure.
• A rent statement should be dated to the start date of the tenancy, not from when arrears started to accrue. This provides a history of the account and can establish a pattern of late payments.
• If the rent has been increased throughout the tenancy, you will have to prove this to the Tribunal and produce either a rent increase letter or an AT2 Form.

Please see a rent statement example below:-

If you require any more information regarding rent statements or other private rented sector advice please contact our team.