Matthew Pennycook, housing minister, has confirmed the government intends the existing Housing Ombudsman Service to set up and operate the new private rented sector landlord ombudsman, in answer to a parliamentary written question from Becky Gittins, Labour MP for Clwyd East.
Regulations which came into force on 17 September 2026 allow the Secretary of State to designate or approve a private landlord redress scheme offering private tenants free and impartial access to redress. Pennycook said the scheme is being prepared for designation while digital and operational systems are built, before further regulations set out which landlords must join and when.
Confirmation that the established social housing ombudsman will take the role gives landlords their clearest picture yet of how the next phase of rental reform will bite. Membership is not yet compulsory, but the direction is fixed: every private landlord should expect to fall inside a formal redress system with awards of up to £25,000 in view.
What the minister confirmed
Gittins asked what steps the department is taking to appoint a Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman under the Renters’ Rights Act. Pennycook replied that the September regulations created the legal route for the Secretary of State to designate or approve a scheme, and stated: “The government’s intention is that the existing Housing Ombudsman Service, which currently provides mandatory redress for social housing tenants, will set up and operate the service.”
He added that the regulations in question do not require landlords to join a scheme immediately. The scheme will be prepared for designation, with the necessary digital and operational functionality developed first, before later regulations define which landlords must join and from what date.
Compensation cap set at £25,000
Ministers have previously indicated that tenants could receive compensation of up to £25,000 through the PRS Ombudsman scheme, a ceiling designed to match the established cap for mandatory property agent redress. Tenants who believe a higher award is justified would still be able to take their case through the courts.
The government has said it will keep the operation of the scheme, including the compensation cap, under review as part of wider governance and monitoring. For landlords, the practical point is that complaint handling standards used in social housing – clear procedures, logged responses and evidence trails – are likely to shape expectations in the private sector too.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s July report on ministers defending the redress scheme as peers warned of landlord exits, when the government insisted the system would be fair to both sides. The latest answer moves the story from principle to plumbing: an existing ombudsman, an existing redress model and a live enabling law. Landlords who assumed the scheme was a distant prospect should reset that assumption, a point underlined by August findings that only 23 percent of landlords knew about the mandatory database rollout.
What this means for landlords
- If you let in England: expect a legal duty to join an approved redress scheme once the next set of regulations lands – build a written complaints process now rather than after designation.
- Keep repair and communication records: ombudsman decisions turn on paper trails, so log complaints, response times and completed works with dates and photos.
- Budget for the £25,000 exposure: most awards will be far smaller, but the ceiling sets the scale of risk for serious service failures.
- Watch for the membership timetable: joining duties will arrive in later regulations – diary-check government updates through the autumn as Phase 2 takes shape.
- Bottom line: redress is no longer theoretical; an operator, a statute and a cap are all named, so preparation this side of Christmas is cheap insurance.
Editor’s view
Naming the Housing Ombudsman as operator is the government choosing the path of least resistance, and landlords should read that as acceleration, not drift. An existing body with staff, casework systems and a £25,000 yardstick can move faster than a start-up scheme. Get complaint handling straight now and the ombudsman becomes background noise; ignore it and the first adverse decision will be an expensive education.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 28 October 2026
Sources: UK Parliament, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Related reading: Ministers defend landlord redress scheme as peers warn on exits
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