Dealing with the 1954 Act

The 1954 Act

Under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (LTA 1954), a tenant has a statutory right to renew its tenancy at the end of the term of the lease. If the tenant is in occupation for its business purposes upon expiry of the lease, the lease will automatically continue on the same terms until the lease is terminated in one of the ways permitted by LTA 1954. The parties can agree to exclude the protection of LTA 1954.

In order to exclude the LTA 1954 protection, the tenant must make either a simple declaration or a statutory declaration confirming the tenant is aware that it will not have the benefit of LTA 1954 rights and that it wishes to enter into the lease regardless.

If you choose to contract out of LTA 1954, your answer will generate the necessary notice and simple or statutory declaration.

Provided the procedure is correctly followed, the tenant will not have an automatic right to a new tenancy and any new lease would be a matter for negotiation between landlord and tenant.

Statutory declaration

If you use a statutory declaration, the Tenant will need to print it off and attend a solicitor who will charge £5 for administering the declaration. You can then upload the statutory declaration and complete this Lease immediately.

Simple Declaration

If you use a simple declaration, you will not be able to complete the Lease for 14 days after you have made the simple declaration. For this 14 day period, if the Tenant is to be granted access to the Premises, it will be under a tenancy at will (Aqqord will generate this automatically). When the 14 day period has expired, you will be able to complete the full Lease.