A very tricky case that went through the Court Of Appeals recently showed all too clearly the inherent dangers of renting to under 18’s.
A local authority made the mistake of entering into a standard tenant agreement with a minor, and when the minor fell behind in the rent and refused to vacate the authority took the matter to court. The Court Of Appeals ruled that because an ordinary agreement had been entered into, the landlord was acting in the capacity of trustee for the child and it was therefore a breach of this trust to seek to evict them. In a further ironic twist the court ruled that notice to quit served on the tenant was ineffective because as trustee for the child the landlord should have served the notice on themselves.
Unfortunately, changes in the care arrangements for minors mean that many local authorities are encouraging minors to enter into private tenant agreements to secure accommodation for themselves. To me, this smacks of the government offloading its responsibilities onto the private sector but that is beside the point.
Easy as it is to feel sorry for these kids, entering into a tenancy with them can spell a major headache for you.
So, unless you can get an adult to take responsibility for them and their tenancy agreement, the advice has to be don’t rent to minors.
