Ground 14 applies in England where the tenant, or someone living in or visiting the home, has caused or is likely to cause nuisance or annoyance to neighbours, the landlord or their staff, or has been convicted of immoral or illegal use or an indictable offence nearby. Discretionary, with no minimum notice.
By Stevie Hayes · Updated 15 October 2026 · Figures checked against legislation.gov.uk and GOV.UK on 15 October 2026 · How we verify · Statutory penalties are maximums; councils and courts decide the amount.
| Fact | Position | Since / status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Discretionary: the court must also find possession reasonable | Housing Act 1988 s.7 (orders for possession: mandatory and discretionary grounds) | |
| Minimum notice | No minimum: the date in the notice may be the day of service | s.8(4) | Housing Act 1988 s.8 (notice of proceedings; s.8(4AA) notice-period table; s.8(3)(c) 12-month validity; s.8(5)) |
| Notice validity | Twelve months from service; Form 3A | Housing Act 1988 s.8 (notice of proceedings; s.8(4AA) notice-period table; s.8(3)(c) 12-month validity; s.8(5)) | |
| Deposit bar | Does not apply to this ground | 1 May 2026 | Housing Act 2004 s.215 (deposit bar on possession, as substituted from 1 May 2026) |
| Court's discretion | May suspend or postpone the order on conditions | Housing Act 1988 s.9 (extended discretion of the court on discretionary grounds) | |
| Misusing the ground | Offence where the tenant surrenders within four months; council penalty up to £40,000 | 1 May 2026 | Housing Act 1988 s.16K (penalty up to £40,000 as an alternative to prosecution) |
| Text of the ground | Housing Act 1988 Schedule 2, as amended from 1 May 2026 | Checked 15 October 2026 | Housing Act 1988 Schedule 2 (grounds for possession) |
Ground 14 is met where the tenant or a person residing in or visiting the dwelling:
"Likely to cause" means a witness need not have been personally affected. It is a Part 2 ground: the court must find possession reasonable. The ground applies to assured tenancies in England.
Ground 14 is in Part 2 of Schedule 2, so it is discretionary: under section 7(4) of the Housing Act 1988 the court must be satisfied both that the ground is made out and that it is reasonable to make the order. Under section 9 it can adjourn, or make a suspended or postponed order on conditions, for example that the conduct stops or the arrears are paid off, and discharge the order if the conditions are kept.
Grounds 7A and 14 are outside the table in section 8(4AA). Under section 8(4) the earliest-proceedings date in a notice citing Ground 14 may be the day of service, so the claim can be issued at once. Ground 14 is discretionary, so Housing Act 1980 s.89 does not apply (s.89(2)(c)) and the court's powers under section 9 govern.
The notice is Form 3A, the prescribed form listed on GOV.UK's assured tenancy forms page. It must state the ground and its particulars (s.8(2)), give an earliest-proceedings date no sooner than the period above, and is valid for twelve months from service (s.8(3)(c)); proceedings begun after that need a fresh notice. Keep a certificate of service, because the notice period and, on the rent grounds, the arrears are both measured from the day of service.
The court may dispense with the notice on this ground only where it considers it just and equitable to do so (s.8(1)(b)).
Possession claims are decided on documents. For Ground 14 a judge will expect to see:
Claims are issued under CPR Part 55 using form N5 with the particulars on N119; the court fixes a hearing and there is no judgment in default (GOV.UK: evicting tenants).
The deposit bar does not apply to Ground 14. Section 215 of the Housing Act 2004 excludes Grounds 7A and 14 from the rule that stops a court making a possession order while a deposit is unprotected, and section 7(5ZC), which is not yet in force (the PRS Database regulations are still a draft), will exclude them from the register bar as well.
Using a ground you cannot prove. Under section 16J of the Housing Act 1988 it is an offence to serve a notice relying on a ground, or to make a claim on it, knowing, or reckless as to whether, the landlord could not obtain a possession order on it, if the tenant then surrenders the tenancy within four months beginning with the date the ground was relied on, without a possession order (s.16J(1)). The council may impose a penalty of up to £40,000 as an alternative to prosecution (s.16K).
Ground 14 has no minimum notice period: under section 8(4) the date in the notice may be the day of service, so proceedings can start at once. Because the ground is discretionary, Housing Act 1980 s.89 does not apply (s.89(2)(c)) and the court's powers under section 9 govern. The ground is discretionary, and courts weigh the seriousness and frequency of the conduct, its effect on neighbours, and whether it has stopped. Thin, undated or second-hand evidence loses these cases; a contemporaneous log and neighbour statements win them. The deposit bar does not apply to Ground 14, and nor will the PRS Database bar.
Government changes that bear on this duty. Where the status says in force the rule already applies; everything else is not yet law for private landlords. Dates are quoted as the government has published them, checked on 15 October 2026.
| Change | Status today | Published timing | Sensible preparation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mandatory landlord and property registration on the Private Rented Sector Database (the landlord register), with an annual fee | regulations in draft | Regional rollout from 15 December 2026 (West Midlands first) to 15 September 2027 for all other purposes, per the draft Private Rented Sector Database Regulations 2026 | Keep copies, not just dates, of the gas safety record, EICR and EPC for each property, and know whether a licence applies; those are what the draft regulations say the entry needs. Source |
None. The date in the Section 8 notice may be the day of service, so the claim can be issued immediately.
No. The nuisance and annoyance limbs need only conduct causing or likely to cause nuisance or annoyance. A conviction is required only for the immoral or illegal use and indictable offence limbs.
No. Section 215 of the Housing Act 2004 excludes Grounds 7A and 14 from the bar on possession orders where a deposit is unprotected.
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Short videos from BundleCreator (play loads the youtube-nocookie.com player):
Before serving on any ground, see which statutory gaps would stop a possession order: the deposit, and, once section 7(5ZC) is in force, the register. The check runs in your browser and stores nothing; the app then holds the notice dates and the evidence for each property.
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