My landlord is anonymous or I cannot find them: what to do

In short

You have a legal right to know who your landlord is, and to have their name and address. Do you only deal with a letting agent? The agent must give you the landlord's name and address within 21 days of you asking in writing. Not doing so is a criminal offence. If your landlord is a company, or based overseas, there are ways to trace them. Not knowing who your landlord is does not stop you bringing a claim. Call us free on 0800 030 4669 and we can help you work through it.

Why some tenants do not know their landlord

This is more common than many people realise. It can happen because:

• You signed through a letting agent and only ever deal with the agent
• The landlord is a company, and no one gave you the owner's name
• The property is owned through an offshore company
• A parent company owns the block, and a separate management company handles contact
• Your original landlord sold up and no one formally told you
• You sub-let from another tenant, or rent a room where the head tenant is the landlord

Your right to ask: Section 1 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985

Under Section 1 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, you can ask your landlord or their agent in writing for the landlord's name and address. They must provide it within 21 days. This holds even if all your contact has been through an agent.

Failing to provide it within 21 days, without a reasonable excuse, is a criminal offence under the Act. The penalty is a fine.

How to use this right:

1. Write to your letting agent or rent collector (email counts as writing)
2. Ask clearly: "Please provide me with the full name and address of the landlord of this property under Section 1 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985"
3. Keep a copy of what you sent and note the date
4. If 21 days pass without a response, contact your council's housing enforcement or trading standards team

Searching the Land Registry

The Land Registry records who owns land and property in England and Wales. You can search for the registered owner of any property by address at gov.uk/search-property-information-land-registry. There is a small fee.

The register will show the name of the registered owner. If the owner is a company, you will see the company name. If it is an individual, you will see their name and sometimes an address.

One catch: not every leasehold flat shows the individual owner at the top level. You may need to check both the freehold title and the leasehold title.

If the landlord is a company: Companies House

If the Land Registry shows that the property is owned by a company, you can find information about that company at find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Companies House is free to use and shows:

• The company's registered address
• The names of directors
• Whether the company is active or dissolved

A company registered overseas will not appear on Companies House. But the Land Registry entry may still show a UK correspondence address.

If the landlord is a registered social landlord

If you rent from a housing association or other registered provider, you can find their details on the Regulator of Social Housing's register at gov.uk/government/organisations/regulator-of-social-housing. The register lists all registered providers, their contact details, and whether they are compliant with the regulator's standards.

What to do if you still cannot find them

If you have used Land Registry, Companies House, and the Section 1 request, and still cannot find a usable address, there are further options:

• Serve notice on the letting agent: under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, a notice served on the agent who collects the rent counts as served on the landlord. So you can send a repair request, a pre-action letter, or even legal proceedings through the agent.
• Ask the court for another way to serve: if you cannot serve documents on a defendant, you can ask the court to allow another method, such as serving the agent, or advertising.
• Contact your council: its housing enforcement team has powers to trace landlords, and to serve improvement notices on agents acting for absent landlords.

How this affects your claim

Not knowing who your landlord is does not prevent you from starting the process. We can help you:

• Identify the correct legal entity to make a claim against
• Trace the landlord using the methods above
• Serve a pre-action protocol letter correctly, including on an agent where necessary
• Proceed with a claim even where the landlord is based overseas

Courts deal with claims against absent landlords all the time. The key: pin down the legal owner through the Land Registry, then direct letters and proceedings at that person or company.

What to do

1. Write to your agent or rent collector asking for the landlord's name and address under Section 1 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. Do this in writing and keep a copy.
2. Search the Land Registry using the property address to find the registered owner.
3. Search Companies House if the owner is a company.
4. Contact your council if the agent does not respond within 21 days.
5. Call us to get help identifying the right person to claim against and how to proceed.

Where we fit in

Support for Tenants helps with housing disrepair claims. We can help you trace your landlord and make sure your claim is directed at the right person, even where the landlord is hard to find. No upfront cost.

You only pay if you win, and the fee comes out of the compensation, not your pocket. If you don't win, you pay nothing. Call us free on 0800 030 4669, send the short form, or message us on WhatsApp. See also where to get other housing help.

Sources

• Section 1, Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 (legislation.gov.uk)
• Search property information from the Land Registry (GOV.UK)
• Companies House (GOV.UK)
• Regulator of Social Housing (GOV.UK)