Renting Homes: The Final Report - Law Commission

PART 7
SURVIVORSHIP, SUCCESSION AND RELATED
MATTERS
INTRODUCTION
7.1 What happens to an occupation contract when a contract-holder dies is an
emotional and difficult issue, particularly where the contract-holder leaves a
spouse, partner or other person with whom the deceased has been living. There
are difficult questions of balance to be resolved. On the one hand, there is a
perfectly understandable desire to offer protection to those who are bereft.
Eviction of the recently bereaved is seen as heartless and unacceptable. On the
other hand, where a consequence of the death of an occupier is that
accommodation is no longer being used as effectively as it might be (for example,
where a dwelling adapted for the needs of a disabled person no longer
accommodates a person with a disability), wider social policy considerations may
indicate that landlords should be able to move a person affected to more
appropriate accommodation.
7.2 Current law responds to these issues by prescribing circumstances in which a
person may succeed to a tenancy. But the succession rules differ, depending on
the identity of the landlord. They also fail to cover some situations where
succession rights might be thought appropriate. We recommend rationalisation of
the current law.
7.3 We have two principal objectives: first, in line with our recommendations for the
creation of a single social tenancy, to create a level playing field for all social
landlords; second, to provide landlords with the opportunity to manage their
estate as effectively as possible in line with the need not to treat the recently
bereaved insensitively. This Part considers four issues which may arise on the
death of a contract-holder:
(1) survivorship;
(2) succession rights;
(3) the transfer of fixed term standard contracts; and
(4) the estate management ground for possession.
SURVIVORSHIP 1
7.4 Before turning to the details of succession, it is important to remember that our
scheme provides that, where there are joint contract-holders, the rights of a joint
contract-holder who dies 2 pass to the survivor in accordance with the principle of
survivorship.
1 Survivorship is discussed in Parts 11 and 14 of Renting Homes (2003) Law Com No 284.
2
The same principle applies where a joint contract-holder does not die but leaves the
contract.
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