New Ministry of Justice figures give landlords a useful baseline for how possession cases were moving through the courts immediately before the first major Renters’ Rights Act changes took effect in England.
The quarterly statistics, covering January to March 2026, show 22,733 landlord possession claims in England and Wales. That was 5% lower than the same quarter in 2025, when there were 23,964 claims. Orders, warrants and repossessions were also down year on year, with repossessions by county court bailiffs falling from 7,345 to 6,888.
For private landlords, however, the picture was more mixed. The MoJ said private landlord claims rose by 4% compared with the same quarter last year, while accelerated claims were down 12% and social landlord claims were down 7%. Across all landlord possession claims in Q1 2026, social landlord claims accounted for 37%, private landlord claims for 34%, and accelerated claims for 29%.
The figures matter because they capture the last full quarter before the key private-rented-sector changes began on 1 May 2026. The Renters’ Rights Act received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025, but the MoJ cautions that any impact from the May implementation date will not show in these statistics yet. The April to June figures are due in September 2026, while the first full quarter under the new regime, July to September 2026, is due in December 2026.
Why the figures are worth watching
For landlords, the immediate lesson is not that the court system has suddenly changed direction. The official data points to lower overall landlord possession activity than a year earlier, but with private landlord claims still edging up. It also shows that possession cases remain a slow process, which is important when landlords are planning around arrears, property recovery, sale decisions or serious tenancy breaches.
The median time from claim to landlord repossession was 26.4 weeks in Q1 2026, slightly higher than the same period in 2025. Claims to order took a median eight weeks, while claims to warrant took 15.9 weeks. These are median figures, so individual cases can move faster or much more slowly depending on the court, the paperwork, tenant response, warrant availability and the facts of the case.
Regional pressure was also uneven. London courts continued to handle a large share of activity, with 7,083 landlord claims and 5,278 landlord orders in Q1 2026, accounting for 31% of each total. For private landlord claims measured by rate, Barking and Dagenham, Newham and Enfield were the highest local authority areas in the release.
What landlords can take from it
The practical point is that possession should be treated as a documented process, not a quick administrative step. Landlords who may need to recover a property should keep tenancy records, rent schedules, communications, inspection notes and notice documents organised from the start. That is especially important now that landlords, agents and advisers are adjusting to the post-1 May rules.
The statistics also underline why early decisions matter. If a tenancy problem is heading towards formal action, delays can compound quickly. That does not mean rushing into a claim, and it is not a substitute for legal advice where a case is disputed or sensitive. It does mean landlords should understand the likely timescales, check the relevant possession grounds and make sure any notice or claim route being considered matches the current rules.
There is also a watch-this-space element. The MoJ says the effects of the Renters’ Rights Act will become clearer in later releases, and it plans to keep monitoring changes as the Act is implemented. The next set of statistics should be more useful for judging whether court activity has changed since the May commencement date.
For now, the safest reading is cautious: overall landlord possession actions were down on Q1 2025, private landlord claims were up, London remained a major centre of activity, and median repossession times still ran to around half a year. Landlords should use the data as a planning signal, while relying on official guidance or professional advice before taking formal possession steps.
Source: Ministry of Justice mortgage and landlord possession statistics: January to March 2026.
