Rights to succeed to a Council Tenancy | Berneslai Homes

Article: Rights to succeed to a Council Tenancy

When a council tenant dies, you may have the right to take over or succeed to the tenancy. This means the home along with all the tenancy rights will pass onto you.

There are conditions that you must meet before we will agree to the succession.

This right applies to secure and introductory tenants.

What are the conditions for succession?  

For a secure or introductory tenancy to be passed on through succession certain conditions have to be met.

• There has been no previous succession to the tenancy.
• The person who wants to succeed must have lived at the property as their only or principal home at the time of the tenants' death.
• The person who wants to succeed must be a family member, spouse or co-habitee (this includes partners of the same sex).
• Unless they are cohabitees or spouse, they must have lived with the tenant for at least 12 months leading up to the tenants' death. The 12-month period does not have to have been in the current property, nor does it have to have been a council property.

In what circumstances is a tenancy already classed as being created by succession?

• A previous transfer of a joint tenancy to a single tenancy on the death of one tenant is classified as a statutory succession.
• Where a successor transfers to another secure tenancy under the same landlord and dies within 6 months they will be classed as a successor to that property too, unless the agreement states otherwise.
• Where a tenancy was assigned under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 S24 and the spouse / tenant was already a successor.
• Where they were a successor in their previous property and have assigned their tenancy by way of a mutual exchange.

Can you refuse a succession if it meets the law?

We cannot refuse the succession if there is a legal right to it, but we can take action to end the tenancy in certain cases. In all these cases we would have to find the new tenant suitable alternative accommodation.

1. We can ask the successor to move to another home if the property is larger than they reasonably required by the successor.

But we can only do this if:

• The a successor is not spouse of the original tenant;
• Suitable alternative accommodation is available; and

We tell the successor at least 6 months but no more than 12 months after the death of the previous tenant

2. The property is designed for an elderly or disabled person and there is no such person living there that needs that type of property.

What if there is more than one person who wants to succeed?

We can make a decision but the potential successors can also ask the court to make a decision.

What do I do next?

If you think you have the right to succeed to a tenancy you need to contact us as soon as possible to discuss the tenancy.

In the first instance you can contact you local Barnsley Connects Office who will take all the relevant information from you and pass this on to us.

There is a form for you to fill in and we will also need to see the death certificate. If you are not the late tenant's husband or wife we will also need to see evidence that you have lived at the property for at least 12 months.

You will need to download and complete a Rights to Succeed a Council Tenancy Form .  Alternatively we can send you a form and  leaflet in the post or you can e-mail us at CustomerServices@berneslaihomes.co.uk

Once we have your application form and all the evidence we will make a decision in 10 working days. If you do have a right to the tenancy we will ask you to sign an agreement to accept the right to the tenancy. We will also give you a full copy of the current tenancy agreement and any other useful information you may need.

If we think that we may have a right to ask you to move to more suitable housing we will discuss this with you.

What if I have not got a legal right to the tenancy?

We will discuss all the possible alternatives with you. We will deal with your case sensitively and we may be able to agree to let you stay in the property on a temporary basis while you can find another home.

Helplines 

For help completing an application form please ring Barnsley Connects on 01226 775555. Opening times are Monday to Friday 9.00am to 5.00pm.

How you can help us

We can make our decision sooner if you complete the form as soon as possible and provide all the evidence we need.

 Useful Leaflets 

Your Tenancy and Tenancy Agreement leaflet will give you some more information about successions.

Or, we can send you a form or leaflet in the post. Contact us by e-mail at CustomerServices@berneslaihomes.co.uk

Legislation

 The right to succeed is covered in:

• For secure tenants - Housing Act 1985
• For introductory tenants - Housing Act 1996

 Response Times / Next Steps

Once we have your application form and all the supporting evidence, we will make a decision in 10 working days. If you do have a right to succeed to the tenancy we will ask you to sign an agreement to accept the right to the tenancy. We will also give you a full copy of the current tenancy agreement and any other useful information you may need.