Rent (Agriculture) Act 1976

4 Statutory tenants and tenancies. E+W

(1) Subject to section 5 below, where a person ceases to be a protected occupier of a dwelling-house on the termination, whether by notice to quit or by virtue of section 16(3) of this Act or otherwise, of his licence or tenancy, he shall, if and so long as he occupies the dwelling-house as his residence, be the statutory tenant of it.

(2) Subject to section 5 below, subsection (3), F1 . . . below shall have effect for determining what person (if any) is the statutory tenant of a dwelling-house at any time after the death of a person (“the original occupier”) who was, immediately before his death, a protected occupier or statutory tenant of the dwelling-house in his own right.

(3) If the original occupier was a man who died leaving a widow who was residing [F2 in the dwelling-house immediately before his death] then, after his death, unless the widow is a protected occupier of the dwelling-house by virtue of section 3(2) above, she shall be the statutory tenant if and so long as she occupies the dwelling-house as her residence.

This subsection is framed by reference to the case where the original occupier was a man, but is to be read as applying equally in the converse case where the original occupier was a woman.

(4) Where—

(a) the original occupier was not a person who died leaving a surviving spouse who was residing [F2 in the dwelling-house immediately before his death], but

(b) one or more persons who were members of his family were residing with him [F3 in the dwelling-house] at the time of and for the [F4 period of 2 years] immediately before his death,

then, after his death, unless that person or, as the case may be, one of those persons is a protected occupier of the [F5 entitled to an assured tenancy of the dwelling-house by succession] .

(5) In [F6 subsections (1) and (3)] above the phrase “if and so long as he occupies the dwelling-house as his residence” shall be construed in accordance with [F7 section 2(3) of the M1 Rent Act 1977] (construction of that phrase in the corresponding provisions of that Act).

[F8 (5A) For the purposes of subsection (3) above, a person who was living with the original occupier as his or her wife or husband shall be treated as the spouse of the original occupier and, subject to subsection (5B) below, the references in subsection (3) above to a widow and in subsection (4) above to a surviving spouse shall be construed accordingly.

(5B) If, immediately after the death of the original occupier, there is, by virtue of subsection (5A) above, more than one person who fulfils the conditions in subsection (3) above, such one of them as may be decided by agreement or, in default of agreement by the county court, shall be the statutory tenant by virtue of that subsection.

(5C) If the original occupier died within the period of 18 months beginning on the operative date, then, for the purposes of subsection (3) above, a person who was residing in the dwelling-house with the original occupier at the time of his death and for the period which began 6 months before the operative date and ended at the time of his death shall be taken to have been residing with the original occupier for the period of 2 years immediately before his death; and in this subsection “the operative date” means the date on which Part I of the Housing Act 1988 came into force.]

(6) A dwelling-house is, in this Act, referred to as subject to a statutory tenancy where there is a statutory tenant of it.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words repealed by Housing Act 1988 (c. 50, SIF 61, 75:1), s. 140(2), Sch. 18

F2 Words substituted by Housing Act 1980 (c. 51), s. 76(3)(4) in relation to deaths occurring after 28.11.1980

F3 Words in s. 4(4)(b) inserted (with effect in accordance with s. 39(4) of the amending Act) by Housing Act 1988 (c. 50), ss. 39(4), 141(3), Sch. 4 para. 11(a)

F4 Words in s. 4(4)(b) substituted (with effect in accordance with s. 39(4) of the amending Act) by Housing Act 1988 (c. 50), ss. 39(4), 141(3), Sch. 4 para. 11(a)

F5 Words in s. 4(4) substituted (with effect in accordance with s. 39(4) of the amending Act) by Housing Act 1988 (c. 50), ss. 39(4), 141(3), Sch. 4 para. 11(b)

F6 Words in s. 4(5) substituted (with effect in accordance with s. 39(4) of the amending Act) by Housing Act 1988 (c. 50), ss. 39(4), 141(3), Sch. 4 para. 12

F7 Words substituted by Rent Act 1977 (c. 42), Sch. 23 para. 72

F8 S. 4(5A)-(5C) inserted (with effect in accordance with s. 39(4) of the amending Act) by Housing Act 1988 (c. 50), ss. 39(4), 141(3), Sch. 4 para. 12

Marginal Citations

M1 1977 c. 42.