Practice Direction 55C Phasing Out

Practice Direction 55C was brought in last year to ease back into possession proceedings after they were suspended during the pandemic. It’s reported that it will partially end on 30 November 2021

PD55C includes the requirement for the landlord to provide notice about any known effect of coronavirus on the tenant, which remains until at least 30 June 2022. 

As a result, removing other parts of PD55C will have little impact on most landlords, as those other parts mostly covered how the court handled listings. 

As a reminder, Practice Direction 55C requires the notice about the effect of coronavirus on the tenant and household to be issued with any accelerated possession claim form and within 14 days of a hearing (for example, a section 8 rent arrears hearing). 

A sample notice is available for subscribers in the court forms guidance pages (England). For Wales, use this court forms guidance. 

View Related Handbook Page

Applying to Court for Possession — Accelerated Procedure

An application for possession by the accelerated procedure is only available after service of a section 21 notice and is processed using the N5B claim form.

Applying to Court for Possession — Standard Procedure

Learn when to make an application to the court using the Possession Claims Online Service (PCOL) or using forms N5 and N119 with our step-by-step guide.