Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 — s.30(1)(f)
Ground (f) requires a firm and settled intention, on the termination date, to demolish or reconstruct the whole or a substantial part of the holding, or to carry out substantial work of construction, and an inability to do so without obtaining possession. Since S Franses the intention must also be unconditional: the landlord must intend to do the works whether or not the tenant leaves.
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Supreme Court · 2018 · s.30(1)(f)
No. The intention must be unconditional — the landlord must intend to do the works whether or not the tenant leaves. A contrived scheme the landlord would abandon if the tenant walked away fails ground (f).
Court of Appeal · 2023 · s.30(1)(a)–(c)
The Court of Appeal confirmed the court looks at the position at the hearing, in the round: the state of the holding, the tenant's conduct over the whole term, and whether it would be fair to turn the tenant out given all the circumstances.
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This is an automated preliminary assessment and should not be relied upon as legal advice. It does not create a surveyor-client relationship and cannot account for the facts, documents or evidence in your matter. Take advice before serving or responding to a notice relying on s.30(1)(f).
Ground (f) in section 30(1)(f) lets a landlord oppose renewal where, on the termination of the current tenancy, it intends to demolish or reconstruct the whole or a substantial part of the holding, or to carry out substantial work of construction, and could not reasonably do so without obtaining possession.
S Franses Ltd v The Cavendish Hotel (London) Ltd [2018] UKSC 62 holds that the landlord's intention must be unconditional. A scheme of works devised only to remove the tenant, which the landlord would abandon if the tenant left voluntarily, does not satisfy ground (f).
Sometimes. Section 31A means the court cannot hold that the landlord could not reasonably carry out the works without possession if the tenant agrees to terms giving access, or will accept a tenancy of an economically separable part, so that the works can be done without obtaining possession.
At the date of the hearing, by reference to the position on the termination of the current tenancy. Evidence assembled after a notice is served still counts, so a case that looks thin today can be built up before trial.
Yes. Ground (f) is a no-fault ground, so a tenant who has to leave is generally entitled to statutory compensation under section 37, calculated from the rateable value of the holding.