You viewed the flat, the agent described it as 'quiet', 'fully maintained', 'no issues with the heating'. You signed. Two weeks later the boiler is broken, the neighbours are running a nightclub, and there is a damp problem so old the previous tenant left a note about it in the kitchen drawer. You want out. The question is whether the law gives you a route.
It might. Where a landlord or letting agent actively misled you before you signed, you may have a statutory right to unwind the tenancy, treat it as if it never happened, and get your money back. That right sits in the retained redress provisions of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, which the government kept in force even though the rules defining unfair practices moved to the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 in April 2025. It is a statutory route with a defined process, and here is how it works.
What consumer law says about being misled by a landlord
Since 6 April 2025, unfair commercial practices are prohibited by the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, which replaced most of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. Landlords and letting agents letting in the course of a business are traders for these purposes, and you, as a prospective tenant, are a consumer. That framing brings consumer law into a relationship many tenants think of as purely contractual. Its use in residential tenancies is still developing, so treat a strong case as worth pursuing rather than a certainty.
The Act covers three main categories of conduct: misleading actions, misleading omissions, and aggressive practices. Misleading actions include false statements about the property's condition, its history, the terms of the tenancy, or anything else likely to cause you to sign when you otherwise would not have. Misleading omissions cover material information the trader leaves out or buries so effectively it amounts to concealment. Aggressive practices include pressure tactics used to push you into signing quickly.
The right most relevant to tenants is the 'right to unwind'. The Consumer Protection (Amendment) Regulations 2014 added it to the 2008 Regulations, and it is the part the government kept in force when the rest moved to the 2024 Act. It lets you enforce these protections yourself through the county court. One limit matters, though. This private right covers a misleading action or an aggressive practice, not a pure omission. A landlord simply staying silent is a matter for Trading Standards, although it can still be evidence that the overall impression they gave was misleading.
Put plainly, if a landlord or agent actively told you something false before you signed, and it would have changed your decision, you may have a statutory right to treat the contract as if it never happened and get your money back.
What counts as a misleading statement or omission
The threshold is not 'they said something slightly wrong'. The misleading practice must have caused you to enter the tenancy. That causal link is what you need to establish.
Common examples that courts and advisers have recognised include:
- Describing a property as in 'good condition' when significant disrepair was present and known before the tenancy started
- Stating the property had no history of damp or mould when it had
- Claiming a lease or licence type that gave you fewer rights than the actual legal relationship
- Stating a property was licensed when it was not, for example describing an unlicensed HMO as compliant
- Misrepresenting the landlord's identity or the terms under which the property was being let
- Promising specific features (parking, a working appliance, inclusion of bills) that turned out to be false
Misleading omissions are trickier. The test is whether a 'typical consumer' would have needed that information to make an informed decision, so if the property had a history of flooding and the agent knew it but said nothing, that omission is likely to meet the test. A pure omission is a matter for Trading Standards rather than your own unwind claim, though, so it works best as evidence alongside something the landlord actively said.
Some things fall outside it. General puffery ('lovely flat', 'great location'), statements that turned out wrong because of events after you signed, and issues you could reasonably have discovered yourself all sit outside the rules. They are aimed at conduct that deceived you, not at making landlords insurers of everything they said.
If the landlord or agent was misleading you about licensing specifically, guidance on how to claim compensation from your landlord in the UK covers the full range of claims you may be able to stack alongside an unwind.
How does the right to unwind work?
The right to unwind lets you treat the tenancy contract as terminated. You give notice that you are exercising the right, and if successful, you can recover the money you paid under the contract, including rent, any advance payments, and potentially your deposit. If you act within the first month you can get a full refund. After that, the amount can be reduced to reflect the time you have already lived there, unless the landlord's conduct makes that reduction inappropriate.
There is a strict time limit. You must exercise the right to unwind within 90 days, counted from the later of the day you signed and the day the tenancy started (usually the start date). If you are outside that 90-day window, the right to unwind is gone, but you may still have a claim for damages under the same regulations. Damages compensate you for the difference in value between what you were promised and what you actually got, rather than unwinding the whole contract.
The process:
- Write to the landlord or letting agent stating that you are exercising your right to unwind under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and the Consumer Protection (Amendment) Regulations 2014
- Set out clearly what the misleading statement or omission was, and when it was made
- State what you paid and what you are claiming back
- Give a reasonable deadline for their response, typically 14 days
- If they do not respond or refuse, file a claim in the county court
Gathering evidence before you send that letter is not optional. You need to show what was said, when, and how it affected your decision. Keep screenshots of listings, emails from agents, any written descriptions, text messages, and notes from viewings. The stronger your paper trail, the less the landlord can argue about what actually happened.
What you can claim if you are past the 90-day window
Missing the 90-day window changes what you can claim, not whether you have a case.
Outside the 90 days, your remedy under the 2008 Regulations shifts to a right to damages. Damages in this context compensate you for the loss you suffered because of the misleading practice. If the property was described as suitable for a family but had structural problems that made it effectively unusable as described, your damages could include:
- The difference in rental value between what you were promised and what you received
- Costs you incurred as a direct result of the misrepresentation (moving costs, temporary accommodation)
- Any losses caused by the disrepair or defect the landlord concealed
You can also combine a consumer protection damages claim with other causes of action. A disrepair claim or a deposit protection claim can run alongside it in the same county court proceedings. A rent repayment order is a separate application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber), but you can pursue it in parallel. None of these routes cancel each other out.
For the deposit angle specifically, see guidance on deposit protection violations and how to claim compensation. If there is also a licensing issue in your HMO, information on how to apply for a rent repayment order in the UK sets out that process step by step.
The county court is the venue for the consumer protection, disrepair and deposit claims. Small claims track covers claims up to £10,000 without requiring a barrister, and the filing fee is proportionate to the claim value. For many tenants, the entire process stays below the threshold where you need anyone in a wig.
Should you go for unwind or damages?
An unwind claim involves three things most tenants find hard: working out which statements qualify as misleading, drafting a letter that cites the right law without sounding amateur, and deciding whether to push for unwind or damages depending on where you sit on the 90-day clock.
Unwind is the stronger remedy, but it is only open for 90 days, counted from the later of the day you signed and the day the tenancy started. If that window has closed, damages under the same regulations are one route, and a statutory discount on the rent you paid, tiered from 25% to 100% by how serious the practice was, is another that is often easier to quantify. Guidance on tenant remedies for unfair trading practices sets out all three. The clock starts on day one, so if you think you were misled, check your position now rather than after another two months of hoping the landlord sorts things out.
How this fits with the Renters' Rights Act 2025
The Renters' Rights Act 2025, which came into force on 1 May 2026, introduced new protections for tenants: abolition of Section 21, stronger grounds requirements for landlords seeking possession, and new duties around property standards. It does not replace your consumer protection rights. The two sets of rules sit alongside each other.
What the Renters' Rights Act adds to the picture is a stronger framework around property standards and landlord conduct. The Decent Homes Standard is due to apply to the private sector from 2035, and Awaab's Law's extension to private rentals is still to be confirmed. Once they apply, a misleading statement about a standard they cover could give you parallel claims while you pursue the consumer protection route.
Rental bidding is now also explicitly illegal under the Renters' Rights Act. If an agent used bidding pressure to push you into a higher rent, that conduct could be aggressive trading under the retained 2008 Regulations in addition to being an unlawful practice subject to a civil penalty under the new Act. Information on rental bidding being illegal under UK tenant rights explains the bidding prohibition in detail.
Tenants in 2026 have more overlapping legal routes than at any point in the last decade. That does not make any individual case simple, but a landlord who misled you before you signed is likely exposed on more than one front.
If you signed your tenancy because of something a landlord or agent said that turned out to be false, or something material they did not tell you, check the date on your tenancy agreement. If you are within 90 days of the later of the day you signed and the day the tenancy started, the right to unwind is still open. If you are past it, a damages claim under the same regulations is still viable.
The first step is knowing whether your situation meets the threshold. If you're not sure, Remedy can read your tenancy agreement, weigh what you were told before signing, and tell you whether you have an unwind or damages claim worth pursuing.
