Guidance for Lodgers and Tenants regarding Urgent Housing Issues

If you’re a tenant or a lodger, the landlord or property owner must go through a legal process to evict you.  This process takes some time and they cannot force you to leave immediately.

If you’re staying with friends or family on an informal basis (i.e. ‘sofa surfing’) you could be asked to leave without notice. If you’re asked to leave and need urgent temporary accommodation, please contact the helpline on 01481 756535 or email housinghelp@gov.gg.

In the first instance, you should contact your landlord to see if an agreement can be reached to extend your stay. If an agreement with your landlord cannot be reached, the landlord may have the right to bring proceedings for eviction. However, in order to do so the landlord will have to arrange for a summons to be served on you.

At the moment, courts are not opening in the normal manner. Wherever possible, court hearings are being postponed until a more suitable date. Where that is not possible, applications will be decided on the basis of written submissions, unless an oral hearing is essential, in which case video conferencing will be used where possible in order to minimise person to person contact.  

Tenants should not ignore any summons to appear in Court and should contact the Greffe by emailing hmgreffier@gov.gg if they have any concerns about whether or not they should attend Court if they are self-isolating. Failure to appear without explanation might result in eviction being granted in your absence.

If you have legal representation, your advocate can guide you on the new measures. If you’re unrepresented, please contact the Greffe at hmgreffier@gov.gg.

It is not necessary to be represented by an advocate in eviction proceedings – the Court will listen to what you have to say if you’re unrepresented. However, if you meet the financial and legal merits criteria for Legal Aid, you may be able to receive additional support. A link to more information on the Guernsey Legal Aid Service is available at www.gov.gg/legalaid. If you would like to apply for Legal Aid, please call 01481 747530 or email legalaid@gov.gg.

While measures are in place which restrict people’s movements, you should stay in your current accommodation as long as it is safe to do so.  

If your tenancy is coming to an end, you should speak to your landlord as soon as possible to see if you can extend the term of your tenancy agreement. You should continue to meet the obligations in your tenancy agreement including paying your rent.

If you’re finding it difficult to pay your rent, or are behind in payments, you should speak with your landlord as soon as possible. You still have a legal obligation to pay your rent, but your landlord may be able to reduce or defer your rent payment until later. It’s important to get any agreement with your landlord in writing. 

If you’re struggling financially, you may be eligible for Income Support or assistance from the Hardship Fund. Please email hardshipfund@gov.gg or call 01481 732516 to discuss what financial support may be available to you. 

If you live in social housing and are having difficulties paying your rent, please contact your appropriate landlord. This will be either States Housing Tenancy Management on 01481 756550 or email housingtenancy@gov.gg, or the Guernsey Housing Association on 01481 245530 or email ghaenquiries@gha.gg.

If you’re concerned about budgeting or debt management, please contact Citizens Advice Guernsey on 01481 242266 for free, confidential and impartial advice.

A helpline has been set up to support those who are facing immediate housing difficulties during the COVID-19 outbreak. 

If you, or someone you know, needs urgent temporary accommodation, please contact the helpline on 01481 756535 or email housinghelp@gov.gg. Everyone’s circumstances are different and this direct contact will enable us to discuss yours and provide suitable advice. If required, we may need to direct you to someone else who will be able to answer your query.

In order to offer you help and advice we’ll need to ask for some specific information about you and your circumstances. This will include:

• Name
• Date of birth
• Contact information – telephone number and e-mail address
• Number of people in your household, including children
• Any pets
• Any medical issues and/or disabilities you may have
• An explanation of your current emergency situation

A member of the team will get back to you as soon as possible to provide advice to help you to find temporary accommodation, or to help you remain in your current accommodation.

You should speak to both your current landlord and new landlord to see if an arrangement can be made to postpone your move until the current restrictions are lifted. If this isn’t possible, you can move to your new accommodation, providing that the move can be carried out in line with the Guidance for Removals Companies which can be downloaded from this page.

If you’re worried that you will not be able to pay your utility bills, please contact your utility provider(s) to discuss your circumstances and see if any special arrangements can be made.

If you pay for utilities directly to your landlord as part of your tenancy agreement, you should continue to pay these charges. However, if you’re concerned that you won’t be able to pay your utility bills due to the impact of COVID-19, you should speak to your landlord as soon as possible. You still have a legal obligation to pay for utilities, but your landlord may agree to reduce or defer your payments until later. You should get any agreement with your landlord in writing.

If you’re struggling financially, you may be eligible for income support or assistance from the Hardship Fund. Please email hardshipfund@gov.gg or call 01481 732516 to discuss what financial support may be available to you. 

If you’re concerned about budgeting or debt management, please contact Citizens Advice Guernsey on 01481 242266 for free, confidential and impartial advice. 

Routine inspections may be carried out by landlords on condition that:

• They are conducted by no more than one person;
• Strict hygiene requirements are followed;
• No one living in the household is symptomatic or has had symptoms in the last 48 hours, is under a compulsory isolation order or awaiting results of testing for COVID-19;
• No member of the household is considered medically vulnerable; and
• No member of the household is present in the house at the time of the visit.

Landlords have the same responsibilities for arranging emergency repairs during the COVID-19 outbreak as normal.

You should report all necessary repairs to your landlord. They might not be able to get the problem fixed during the usual timeframe, but shouldn’t delay essential repairs unreasonably.

If you’re a social housing tenant, please note that the maintenance teams are only carrying out emergency repairs until further notice. For emergency repairs please call:

• for States properties 01481 724215
• for Guernsey Housing Association properties 01481 240866 (08:00 to 16:00) 07911 722353 (out of hours)

Please remember this service is for emergencies only.

If you think you may need longer term help with housing and you meet the eligibility criteria for social rented housing, we strongly recommend you complete and submit an application form as soon as possible. To be eligible for social rented housing you need to meet the following criteria:

• Be at least 18 years old.
• Be able to demonstrate your long-term ability to reside lawfully in any local market accommodation in Guernsey.
• Be able to demonstrate you have not had a previous tenancy terminated as a result of a breach of tenancy.
• Have a net family income (i.e. after income tax and social security payments) below the relevant income threshold, as shown below: 

• Have household capital or assets (known as a ‘nest egg’) below the following limits:

• If you currently own property, you will not be eligible for social rented housing. However, if you have previously owned a property you may be eligible if you meet the criteria (see above).

More information and an application form is available at www.gov.gg/applyhousing.

Most social housing applications are on hold during the pandemic. However, high priority applications are being considered if the applicant is in immediate risk and needs emergency accommodation.

A Clinical Self-Isolation and Accommodation Support Scheme has been established to assist Guernsey residents and workers who, due to clinical reasons in relation to COVID-19, need alternative accommodation to their usual home environment. This is so that they can “self-isolate” or “shield” in line with public health advice but their current accommodation makes it difficult – for example if they live in staff accommodation. 

If you think you may need to relocate to alternative accommodation in order to self-isolate or shield, please contact the Clinical Helpline by calling 01481 756938 or 01481 756969, or emailing publichealth@gov.gg. Your contact details will then be passed onto the Community Cell team who will liaise with you directly.

Further information about the Clinical Self-Isolation and Accommodation Support Scheme is available at https://covid19.gov.gg/guidance/accommodation-scheme.