Rent guarantors and the Renters' Rights Act: what's changed

The government has started telling landlords to go back through their guarantor agreements and check whether they still do what they were meant to. It is easy to see why a guarantee signed a couple of years ago, tucked away with the rest of the tenancy paperwork, might not be top of mind. But the Renters' Rights Act has changed the ground those older agreements were built on, and a guarantee that has not been reviewed since could turn out to be worth less than you think exactly when you need it most.

This matters more than it might have a couple of years ago, too, because guarantors themselves have become more important. For the full picture of how the Act reshaped tenancies from 1st May 2026, our landlord guide is the best starting point. This piece goes narrower, into the one area, guarantors, that is catching a lot of landlords out.

Why guarantors matter more than they used to

One of the quieter changes in the Act is a cap on rent in advance. For tenancies signed on or after 1st May 2026, a landlord cannot require more than one month's rent upfront, and any clause trying to demand more is simply unenforceable. Before that change, some landlords leaned on a large upfront payment, several months' rent in one go, as their main protection against a tenant who could not pay. With that option gone, more landlords are turning to a guarantor instead, particularly for tenants who are new to renting, moving from overseas, or reliant on housing benefit or universal credit to cover part of the rent.

That makes it worth getting the guarantee itself right. A guarantor agreement is only as good as its wording, and the Act has changed enough of the underlying tenancy structure that older wording can fall short without anyone noticing until there is a claim to make.

Three ways the Act affects agreements signed before May 2026

1. Fixed terms have gone, and some guarantees went with them. Before the Act, most tenancies were assured shorthold tenancies with a fixed term, and guarantee wording was often written to match, covering rent and damage for that specific term. On 1st May 2026, existing fixed terms were converted into rolling periodic tenancies. If a guarantee only refers to the fixed term by name and does not extend to whatever tenancy replaces it, a guarantor could argue their liability ended the day the fixed term would have finished, even though the tenant is still living in the property.
2. Guarantors cannot be made liable for a rent increase that skipped the proper process. Rent can now only be increased once a year, using the section 13 notice procedure, with the tenant able to challenge an increase they think is above market rate. If a landlord raises the rent outside that process, whether informally or through an old contractual clause, a guarantor is not on the hook for the extra amount. Older agreements that assume any rent rise the landlord sets is automatically covered are now out of step with the law.
3. Some older terms may now count as unfair, and therefore unenforceable. Broadly worded guarantees, ones that try to cover any liability the tenant could ever incur, however it arises, sit uneasily next to the Act's wider push for clearer, fairer tenancy terms. A guarantor who never got the chance to see the tenancy agreement, or was not given time to take independent advice before signing, is in a stronger position to dispute a claim than the landlord might expect.

A step-by-step checklist for reviewing your guarantor agreements

None of this means existing guarantees are worthless, or that you need to start again from scratch. It means checking the wording against how the law actually works now, and closing any gaps while the tenancy is still running.

• Pull together every guarantee signed before 1st May 2026. Start with any tenancy where the fixed term has already run its course, since those are the ones most likely to have a gap.
• Check whether the wording covers the tenancy as it now stands. Look for language tied specifically to a fixed term, and whether it extends to a periodic tenancy or any renewal.
• Check how rent increases are covered. The guarantee should reference the correct legal process, not just any rent figure the landlord sets.
• Get the guarantor's written consent to any changes. You cannot simply extend someone's liability without them agreeing to it. If the wording needs updating, that requires a fresh signature, not a unilateral note on file.
• Where the gap is significant, use a new deed rather than patching the old one. A clean, up-to-date guarantee is easier to rely on later than an old one with amendments bolted on.
• Keep a record of the review. Note the date you checked each agreement and what, if anything, changed, so you have a clear paper trail if it is ever tested.

If you are at all unsure whether a particular agreement still holds up, it is worth getting independent legal advice rather than guessing. The cost of a short consultation is small next to the cost of finding out a guarantee was unenforceable after a tenant has already fallen behind on rent.

What tenants and guarantors should know

If you are a guarantor on a tenancy that had its fixed term converted to periodic on 1st May 2026, and your original guarantee was written around that fixed term specifically, you may no longer be liable unless you have since agreed to extend it. You are also protected against rent increases that have not gone through the correct section 13 process, and your liability can never go beyond what the tenant themselves owes, or beyond what is written into the guarantee. For the wider changes tenants have seen since fixed terms disappeared, our guide to what changed for tenants when Section 21 was abolished covers the rest of the picture. If you are asked to sign a new or amended guarantee, take the time to read it properly, and do not feel pressured to sign on the spot, whatever the landlord's timeline.

Getting the paperwork right from the start

The best time to sort this out is before it becomes a problem, which is exactly why the government's advice is worth acting on now rather than filing away. If you are managing a let yourself and want a second pair of eyes on your paperwork, or would rather hand the whole process, including tenancy documents and guarantor checks, to someone else, our tenant find service and our fully managed service both include up-to-date tenancy documentation as standard, so you are not relying on wording drafted before the Act came into force.

A guarantor agreement is meant to be the thing you fall back on when everything else has gone wrong. It is worth ten minutes now to make sure it will actually do that job if you ever need it to.