A draft statutory instrument ? the Private Landlord Redress Schemes (Approval and Designation) Regulations 2026 ? has been laid before Parliament under the RRA 2025. It sets the framework under which redress schemes for private landlords will be approved and designated. The SI requires affirmative resolution of both Houses before it is made.
What the draft SI does. The Private Landlord Redress Schemes (Approval and Designation) Regulations 2026 (draft SI, UKDSI 9780348282801) is the secondary legislation required to give effect to the PRS redress scheme provisions in Part 2 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025. This is a draft item of legislation and has not yet been made as a UK Statutory Instrument. It was laid before Parliament under section 140(5) of the Renters' Rights Act 2025, for approval by resolution of each House of Parliament. The regulations set out the criteria for approving scheme operators, the conditions that approved schemes must meet, the designation process, and the costs framework including scheme fees.
Parliamentary procedure. The SI is subject to the affirmative resolution procedure and has been laid before and must be approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament in accordance with section 140(5) of the Renters' Rights Act 2025.
These Regulations may be cited as the Private Landlord Redress Schemes (Approval and Designation) Regulations 2026, and will come into force on the day after the day on which they are made. Landlords should therefore monitor its progress through both Houses. The regulations extend to England and Wales.
Context: the PRS redress timeline. The mandatory PRS redress scheme forms part of the RRA's Phase 2 reforms. From late 2026, the new database for the private rented sector will start to be rolled out across regions. The new ombudsman service will be implemented after the database, and the government expects the new service to be ready in 2028. Once the redress scheme SI is made and the database is operational, all private landlords in England will be required to be members of a designated redress scheme, enabling tenants to raise complaints without going to court.
Landlord preparation. While no registration or fees are yet required, landlords should begin familiarising themselves with the redress scheme framework. Phase two will bring in a Private Landlord Ombudsman ? an independent service aiming to resolve landlord and tenant disputes without the need to go to court ? and a Private Rented Sector Database with a requirement that all landlords and properties need to be registered. Failure to register once live will constitute an offence under the RRA 2025 and could lead to civil penalties of up to ?40,000 for repeated or continued breaches.
Action required
No immediate compliance action required. Landlords and letting agents should monitor parliamentary progress. Mandatory membership of a designated redress scheme will become compulsory once the SI is made and the PRS database phase commences in late 2026.
Effective
2026-12-31
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